WWW.FIFA.COM/THEWEEKLY
ISSUE 47/2015, 27 NOVEMBER 2015 ENGLISH EDITION
Fédération Internationale de Football Association – Since 1904
Malawi’s chanceFootball development in Africa
BRAZIL CORINTHIANS AND
THE ‘HEXACAMPEÃO’
ENGLAND FORMER STARS UNITE AT SALFORD CITY FC
CHINA PR GUANGZHOU EVERGRANDE
REACH THE TOP IN ASIA
T H I S W E E K I N T H E W O R L D O F F O O T B A L L
North and Central America 35 members www.concacaf.com
South America 10 members www.conmebol.com
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FIFA Club World Cup
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10 September – 1 October 2016, Colombia
Malawi’s chanceOur cover shows U-15 youth league players celebrating in Blantyre.
Simon Bruty
6 Malawi’s wind of change
With Ernest Mtawali appointed national team coach in the summer, our reporter Peter Kanjere paid the Malawian legend a visit. Regional U-15 leagues also got underway across the country at the end of October in a FIFA pilot project aiming to forge a link between grassroots football and the national team and promote talent in the long term.
16 Brazil Having secured their sixth championship title last week, Corinthians delivered an outstanding performance to record a 6-1 win over local rivals Sao Paulo.
18 Adama Traore In an interview, the Mali and Monaco midfielder discusses the FIFA U-20 World Cup in New Zealand, being named player of the tournament and his passion for music.
35 Art of Football Alex de la Iglesia reflects on Lionel Messi’s remarkable career in the documentary “Messi”.
15 Applying the emergency brake
Stuttgart have dismissed their coach in a bid to halt their inexorable slide towards the foot of the Bundesliga table. (Pictured: Christian Gentner)
2 2 Aiming high Salford City are causing one sensation after another with the support of their famous owners. (Pictured: Ryan Giggs)
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T H I S W E E K I N T H E W O R L D O F F O O T B A L L
Europe 54 members www.uefa.com
Africa 54 members www.cafonline.com
Asia 46 members www.the-afc.com
Oceania 11 members www.oceaniafootball.com
28 Out of luck Heinrich Kwiatkowski’s FIFA World Cup appearances for Germany proved to be unsuccessful.
17 Ticket booked Luiz Felipe Scolari and Guangzhou Evergrande are on their way to the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan after winning the AFC Champions League.
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U N C O V E R E D
After the humiliation of conceding 14 goals in two matches, Heinrich Kwiatkowski had had enough. “Please don’t pick me again,” the unnerved goalkeeper told his coach.
The inglorious tale of Germany’s reserve shotstopper in the 1954 and 1958 FIFA World Cups includes real-life moments stranger than fiction. First Kwiatkowski could have drowned while taking a cigarette break before even winning his first international cap. This was closely followed by an 8-3 defeat to Hungary and then, four years later in his second and final FIFA World Cup appearance, a 6-3 thrashing at the hands of France. Annette Braun recalls his story on pages 28 and 29.
Starting on page six, we present the similarly entertaining story of Ernest Mtawali, who has played football on every continent except one and is now seeking to push Malawi’s national team forward. “Over the years, we lost our real style of play,” says Walter Nyamilandu, head of the country’s national football association. “We want Ernest to restore that.” Malawi's sights are firmly set on the 2017 CAF Africa Cup of Nations. Å
Alan Schweingruber
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New foundations Young footballers train on artificial turf in Blantyre.
THE TIME IS RIGHT FOR MALAWI’S MTAWALI
M A L AW I
Recently-appointed Malawi coach Ernest Mtawali’s story is stranger than fiction, writes Peter Kanjere from Blantyre.
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Ernest Mtawali, the new coach of the land-locked nation Malawi in south-east Africa, boasts a life story that should fascinate football fans every-where. Mtawali played on all but one continent – Africa, Asia, Europe and South America – and shared the field with Diego Maradona. He was also coached by Kevin Keegan in a distin-guished career that can only be quali-fied as extraordinary.Speaking from the small two-storey
mansion he built from his earnings in the game in Blantyre, Malawi’s commercial capital, Mtawali ran through a list of some other great coaches of the game he came across over the course of his career. “I played and trained under highly-qualified coach-es, namely Screamer Tshabalala from Mamelodi Sundowns in South Africa, the late Brian Clough at Nottingham Forest, Kevin Keegan at Newcastle United, Osvaldo Ardiles at Tottenham Hotspur and Alain Giresse at Toulouse in France, to name a few,” said the former midfielder, whose strength was
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The legendary Ernest Mtawali Wearing the shirt of French Ligue 1 club Toulouse in 1998 (right) and as the national team’s newly-appointed coach.
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Red versus blue U-15 players from Blantyre’s youth development project. passing and creating goals for team-mates all over
the world.Mtawali earned 62 caps for Malawi and played
at the highest level for clubs in his homeland, South Africa, Argentina, Italy, France and United Arab Emirates in a career which spanned 23 years and saw him score 218 goals in 866 club games.
A South African motherThe youngest of five children, Mtawali was born in Malawi in 1966, five years after his father, the late Bishop Mtawali had returned from South Africa where he had married a local woman. As a young-ster, his world was turned upside-down by his mother’s return to her homeland, due to ill-health.
Mtawali had just broken into Malawi top club side Hardware Stars and earned his debut for Malawi’s senior team, helping them to a maiden Africa Cup of Nations qualification in 1984, when he decided to follow his mother to South Africa. He was smuggled by a scout through neighbouring Zambia to Botswana where they found a car wait-ing to take them to the land of apartheid.
“I did not play in the actual Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d’Ivoire because I had left for South Africa, not only to play soccer but to meet my mother whom I had not seen for 10 years. It was a great opportunity for me to get an offer to play for a club in apartheid South Africa,” he recalls.
“Due to the situation in South Africa, it took me a long time to trace the whereabouts of my mother and it was difficult for people coming from other African countries to live and work there. I was forced to acquire an ID in a different name – Ernest Chirwali – just to survive.”
Over the course of the next 18 months, Mta wali turned out for Welkom Real Hearts, Bloemfontein Celtic and Sundowns before becoming the first for-eigner to win South Africa’s Footballer of the Year award in 1985.
Unsurprisingly, scouts soon came knocking on his door and before long he was sent to Italy for trials at fourth tier side Bassano Virtus.
“I did well and was offered a contract for a year,” said Mtawali. “I did so well with Bassano that the following year, a club playing in Serie A, Si
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It is a dream for many young Malawian football fans to emulate Essau Boxer Kanyenda by turning their hobby into their job and playing for the national team. It is a dream that the striker has personified in his life.
Kanyenda’s career began in 1998 at FC Welfare in Dwangwa, Malawi. Following brief spells at clubs including FC Rostov and Lokomotiv Moscow in Russia, he has been playing for South African side Polokwane City since 2012. The 33 year-old has also played 53 times for his country and scored 12 goals, making him a role model for the young generation of Malawian footballers. The same can be said for his international teammate Fisher Kondowe, who plays his club football for Malawian Super League champi-ons and current leaders Big Bullets.
Tapping potentialAlong with talent and a lot of hard work, players need a good support network in order to make the jump from grassroots and youth football to professional, first-team football. From 2015 to 2018, the establishment of
domestic youth tournaments will be a priority for FIFA member states. The world governing body is supporting the ambitions of national associations with a project to set up regional U15 leagues in various countries, and at the end of October it was Malawi’s turn.
BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
Beaming smiles U15 coach Tioney Mhone with his protégés Kumbukani (l.) and Humprey Minandi.
Regional U15 competition made its debut in Malawi at the end of October. The new league is a pilot project for a global FIFA initiative supporting the long-term
development of youth football.
There was great enthusiasm among the players in the opening match-es involving Zomba Urban, Chiradzulu, Lilongwe Urban and Dedza. These are the potential future stars of Malawian football, the next Kanyenda or Kondowe. The games signalled the start of an initial two-year test phase,
for which Malawi was deliberately chosen. “Malawi already has successful grassroots programmes in place and has drawn up a clear development strategy for the coming years,” said Jurg Nepfer, head of FIFA’s education and technical development department. Similar initiatives are set to be
launched in the future in other countries with grassroots structures in place.
No talent should be lost on the journey to adulthood. National teams benefit from good youth development, too. FIFA is spending $15 million
over the next three years to implement the programme globally, which will primarily involve creating new leagues as well as training young coaches and referees.
Who knows, perhaps some of those players who played in the opening games of the Malawi U15 league at the end of October will soon be part of the senior national team, following in the footsteps of their heroes Essau Boxer Kanyenda and Fisher Kondowe.
Annette Braun
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Just like the pros The youngsters make their entrance, look on anxiously from the bench and prepare for kick-off. The team
in blue ultimately emerge victorious.
Empoli wanted to sign me, but I was stopped by FIFA because I had left Malawi without a clearance.”
Efforts to sign for Empoli under the name Ernest Molemela (the surname of his former Celtic boss) came to nothing, as did attempts to join Besiktas in Turkey and Nottingham Forest in England, due to the FIFA ban of South Africa.
“I returned to South Africa and went back to Bloemfontein Celtic. I could not play for any FIFA- affiliated country until the ban was lifted,” he said. When that finally came about in 1992, the Football Association of Malawi welcomed Mtawali back to the national team for the next chapter of his career, which lasted until he retired in 2005.
After rejoining the Malawi national team, Mta-wali moved to Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina where he was lucky enough to play indoor football with Maradona. Then came a transfer to Toulouse in France’s Ligue 1, followed by stint at Al Wahd in United Arab Emirates.
“I regret nothing”Despite missing out on playing at the 1984 Africa Cup of Nations and losing out on the chance to represent top clubs in Europe earlier in his career, in Mtawali’s world there is no room for regrets. He went on to become a coach for Malawi U-20 nation-al team, where he led the Junior Flames to success, just missing out on qualification for the 2014 Afri-ca Youth Championship.
That impressive record paved the way for his promotion to the senior team to replace Young Chi-modzi, who was dismissed on June 13 2015 after Malawi lost 2-1 at home to Zimbabwe in the first match of 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying.
“Look, I was influenced by the late Roy Bailey who is father to Gary Bailey, the ex-Manchester United goalkeeper,” said the 49-year-old Mtawali. “He used to take me for coaching clinics as far back in 1989 just after I joined Sundowns from Bloem-fontein Celtic. I was the captain of Sundowns from 1989 to 1994 during which time the management
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Mtawali became the f irst foreigner to win South Afr ica’s Footballer of the Year in 1985.
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Not just players Malawi’s children and young people practice serving as assistant referees.
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used to ask me to train youngsters who were ear-marked to play for them.”
Breathing new life into the national team
Fluent in French and English, born to a Malawian father and South African mother, Mtawali has embarked on what seems a one-man football revo-lution in Malawi. Within two months, he has hand-ed debuts to seven players and dropped a number of veterans, prompting criticism from, among oth-ers, South Africa-based midfielder Robert Ng’ambi, who accused the coach of showing disrespect by discarding senior players for inexperienced ones.
“I would say it has been a big challenge,” said Mtawali. “I have been the number one supporter of the Malawian national team and an ex-player of the team and I know how passionate Malawians are about their team. I would like to see Malawi moving up the FIFA Ranking (ed: Malawi are in 97th position as of November 2015). I know change is not easy but I believe we have the potential to do better.”
Mtawali has overseen three international match-es so far, registering a win, a draw and a loss. The Flames lost 2-0 to Tanzania in the first leg of the preliminary round of 2018 FIFA World Cup qualify-ing and bowed out of the race despite winning 1-0 in the return leg played in Malawi. Tanzania went on to lose 9-2 on aggregate to Africa’s number one ranked team, Algeria, in the second round of quali-fying.
“Everybody will see the fruits of the current progress in the next five years, even if we can’t deny that it was a big disappointment not to reach the next round of qualifying for the World Cup,” said Mtawali.
Walter Nyamilandu the president of the Football Association of Malawi said that Mtawali, who holds a UEFA B Licence, has been tasked with reviving his country’s 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign. Malawi are currently third in group L on one point, the same number as fourth-placed Guinea and three behind Zimbabwe and Swaziland on four points.
“I know change is not easy.” Malawi coach Ernest Mtawali
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FIFA IN MALAWIWithin the scope of its Goal Programmes, FIFA has supported the Malawi Football
Association with USD 1.7 million since 2001. The financial aid has been used in part to build a regional technical centre in Mzuzu. This centre helps strengthen the country’s infrastructure, which in turn benefits the longterm development of young players. Between 2011 and 2015 the FAP contribution amounted to a total of USD 2.6 million.
M A L AW I
“We have trust and confidence in the pair (Mta-wali and his deputy Nsanzurwimo Ramadhan),” said Nyamilandu. “What we have seen is that they have not been tried and tested. They offer something different. Over the years, we lost our real style of Malawi play and we want them to restore that,” said Nyamilandu, who played alongside Mtawali for Malawi in the late 1990s.
“We saw tremendous potential in Ernest. We have also tracked his progress from the time he was coaching Malawi’s Under-20s. We have been groom-ing Ernest over four years. He is ready for the chal-lenge. Everybody has their time, and this is Ernest’s time.” Å
Rehearsing every ritual Just like anywhere else in the world, the two
sides gather before kick-off, contest an exciting match and then reflect on the
experience ready for the next game.
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O N T H E I N S I D ETA L K I N G P O I N T S
Germany those fans are still searching for an answer to that question. Despite auspi-cious predictions at the start of the season, partly made based on the strength of the opposition, the reality now is rather sober-ing: Stuttgart are third from bottom in the table, having reached their lowest ebb with a 4-0 defeat at home to FC Augsburg.
Nevertheless, the club’s supporters have not lost their sense of humour. After Stuttgart conceded the fourth goal, the fans refrained from any form of involvement in the match. No chanting and no whistling could be heard. Once the players had grown accus-tomed to the peculiar silence towards the end of the game, the fans suddenly sang out: “Oh, how great this is!”
Stuttgart lacked the basics against Augs-burg: the ability to win tackles and cover the ground. The team’s performance sealed the fate of head coach Alexander Zorniger, who was subsequently dismissed. “We were no longer convinced we could successfully continue working together,” said sporting director Robin Dutt. The U-23 coach Jurgen Kramny has taken over first team duties on
G e r m a n y : B u n d e s l i g a
Stuttga r t on the sl ide
Alan Schweingruber is a staff writer on The FIFA Weekly.
It is the feeling of impo-tence, in the broadest sense of the term, that fans strug-
gle with when their team goes through a bad patch. After a match they might meet up for a beer to help digest a defeat suffered by their beloved club. That is something supporters of VfB Stuttgart have been doing for a while now. The club's relegation fight last spring left nerves frayed among the Stuttgart faithful. How is it, asked the fans, given our relatively strong squad, we find ourselves fighting against relegation rather than for a European place? There was no plausible explanation, but at least they managed to avoid the drop.
Fast-forward a few months and after 13 rounds of matches in the new season in
an interim basis. When Stuttgart face Dortmund on 29 November it will be in-triguing to observe how the team react and, given the criticism Zorniger faced for the system he employed, how Kramny will set the team up.
Elsewhere, reigning champions Bayern Munich are dealing with tactics in their own way. In the build-up to their second goal in a 3-1 victory over Schalke, the Bay-ern attackers hung back, allowing central defender Javi Martinez to sneak unnoticed into the penalty area and wait for a cross from Arjen Robben. It worked out very well: the unmarked Spaniard even calmly sig-nalled where to put the ball before heading home. It was like watching football being played on a console.
Bayern could ensure they remain top of the table over the winter break with victory over Hertha Berlin. However, they would also need a spirited Stuttgart side to take points off Dortmund, and right now that is not a likely proposition. Å
Stuttgart at a loss The VfB players after their dispiriting 4-0 defeat against Augsburg.G
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B r a z i l : S e r i e A
Cor inth ia ns f ly ing h igh
Sven Goldmann is a leading football correspondent at Tagesspiegel newspaper in Berlin.
Winning a league title in Rio de Janeiro is quite some-
thing for a team from Sao Paulo; after all, the rivalry between Brazil’s two biggest cities is legendary. In truth, Corinthians’ triumph had long been on the cards. By the time they sealed their sixth league title with a 1-1 draw away at Vasco da Gama, the dream they had been chasing for a full four years was a mere formality.
However, the real party for the club’s Hexacampeao did not get started until two days later. And as tradition demands, it was held at the Itaquerao, Corinthians’ stadium in the eastern suburbs of Sao Paulo. The day could not have been choreographed any better: the visiting team for the newly crowned champions’ first home fixture came from their own city. Not Palmeiras, Corinthians’ arch-rivals for the past 100 years or so, but the great Sao Paulo Futebol Clube, home to Brazil legends Kaka and Cafu.
Sao Paulo were not just there to make up the numbers. They needed every point they could get to qualify for the Copa Libertado-res, but Corinthians proved far too strong for them, running out 6-1 winners. Indeed, on matchday 36 of the Campeonato Brasilei-ro, the game was so one-sided that some of the visiting fans were seen heading for the exits at half time. By then, goals from Bruno Henrique, Angel Romero and Edu Dracena had propelled Corinthians into a 3-0 lead.
The champions were flying high, despite head coach Tite having rested regulars such as Gil, Elia, Jadson, Renato Augusto, Malcolm and Vagner Love. Not that you would have noticed: Lucca’s second-half goal to make it 4-0 and the combination play that preceded it were a testament to the sheer quality of the champions’ football. Not until Hudson had put the ball in his own net to make it 5-0 did Sao Paulo enjoy some success of their own. Carlinhos netted
a consolation, but by then he was in no mood for to celebrate. By the time substi-tute Cristian slotted home his penalty to make it 6-1, the terraces were bouncing.
The fans sang and danced to cries of “ole!” and “campeao!”. The Itaquerao had not enjoyed itself so much since June last year, when Brazil beat Croatia 3-1 at the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ opener. Brazil still harboured dreams of winning the competi-tion for a sixth time at that time, of course, but in the end Corinthians succeeded where
the Seleção failed. After the wayward showing of the national side, Tite was seen as the natural successor to departing coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, the former having already won both the FIFA Club World Cup and the Copa Libertadores with Corinthi-ans. Surprisingly, however, the Brazilian Football Federation plumped for Carlos Dunga. “I don’t know what criteria formed the basis for that decision. I was ready for the Seleção,” said Tite at the time, before taking a six-month sabbatical and returning to Corinthians at the start of the year. Å
A masterly performance Corinthians celebrate their fifth goal in the derby against Sao Paulo.
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A F C C h a m p i o n s L e a g u e
Scola r i busy rebu i ld ing a reputat ion
Sarah Steiner is a staff writer on The FIFA Weekly.
After a gruelling campaign, Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande are the new
winners of the 2015 AFC Champions League. In front of a partisan crowd of 50,000 at the club’s Tianhe Stadium, Luiz Felipe Scolari’s charges overcame UAE outfit Al Ahli to edge a narrow 1-0 aggregate victory following a goalless first leg. The Southern China Tigers have now won Asia’s most prestigious club competition for a second time following their triumph in 2013, and will thus represent the continent at the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup. The tournament takes place in Japan between 10 and 20 December, with Guangzhou’s first game against Mexican side Club America.
The investment made in Guangzhou’s playing staff over the past few years is now paying
off, particularly in the case of Brazilian striker Elkeson. The 26-year-old joined the club just under three years ago and showed in the second leg just what a signing he has been by deciding the game on his own. In the 54th minute, he received the ball with his back to goal, nutmegged defender Salmeen Khamis and confidently fired in the winning goal.
“I’d like to congratulate all our fans and all Chinese people that we’re now back on top,” said a beaming Elkeson after a tie in which Guangzhou were deserving winners having played the better football over the two games. “Despite all the setbacks, we’ve stayed fo-cused,” added Elkeson. "The players have a really good understanding with each other and our coach Luiz Felipe Scolari is massively ambitious. It was like we were meant to win.”
Elkeson’s compatriot Scolari bagged his second piece of silverware with Guangzhou, having led the club to the Chinese league title earlier this year. Scolari's reputation had been damaged by a disastrous 2014 FIFA World Cup™ campaign in charge of Brazil, in which the host nation were embarrassed 7-1 in the semi-final against Germany. Scolari will be haunted by that defeat for years to come, but the former Chelsea and Portugal coach is tasting success once again, and a tone of defiance could be detected in his post-match comments: “Winners are those that don’t give up!”
The 67-year-old lives by the mantra that failure is not an option and that is an idea his players have evidently bought into: since he took charge at the club back in June, Guangzhou have not lost a single game. Scolari will now hope his side's winning streak continues beyond the meeting with Club America in Osaka on 13 December. “Our next target is [to win] the Club World Cup, and why not? I have a great team, a great club and great players. I can make this dream a reality.” Å
“Winners are those that never give up.”
Luiz Felipe Scolari
Celebration time AFC Champions League winners Guangzhou Evergrande and their coach Luiz Felipe Scolari.im
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NameAdama “Noss” TraoreDate and place of birth28 June 1995, Bamako, MaliPositionMidfielderClubs played for2013–2014 AS Bakaridjan2014–2015 Lillesince 2015 MonacoMali national team2 caps
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Adama Traore, tell us where your nickname, Noss, comes from.
Adama Traore: It’s from Mali. If your first name’s ‘Adama’, you get called ‘Noss’ or ‘Nostra’, after Nostradamus.
What stands out for you from the FIFA U-20 World Cup?
I remember the “African derby” against Senegal in the match for third place. I scored a very nice goal from distance with my right foot.
Did you honestly expect to be named the player of the tournament or did you think that accolade would go to a player from Serbia or Brazil, the two finalists?
I never imagined winning the award. I did honestly think it would be a Serbia or Brazil player, and it came as a big surprise to me.
Which player impressed you the most in New Zealand and why?
There were quite a few players who impressed me. There was one in particular but I can’t remember his name. He was a Swiss defensive midfielder. A great player.
In winning the Golden Ball at an U-20 World Cup you’ve joined a select band of great players featuring Diego Maradona, Lionel Messi and the likes of Adriano, your compa-triot Seydou Keita, Javier Saviola, Sergio Aguero and Paul Pogba. How does it feel to be compared to players of that calibre?
It’s like a dream come true for me to have won the Golden Ball. Hearing all those great players who’ve won it before me just makes me think about everything I still need to do to win more trophies in the future, about all the work in front of me and the path I still have to take.
Did you ever picture yourself playing for France? Did the French Football Association (FFF) ever approach you, your father or your agent about it?
No, that never happened.
The great France midfielder Jean-Amadou Tigana was born 40 years before you, in the Malian capital of Bamako, on 23 June 1955. He had a similar style to you but chose to take out French nationality and ended up winning the 1984 European Championships with a Bleus side that also contained Michel Platini and the current Mali coach Alain Giresse. What do you think of Tigana?
Yes, I’ve heard of him. I’ve never met him, but I know he was a great player and that he was also a very successful coach here with Monaco.
Let’s turn to Mali’s World Cup qualification hopes. Would you agree that they face a tall order in trying to reach the world finals for the first time in their history?
No, I think they have a chance. This is a good generation of players and I hope it happens.
What’s the nicest compliment you’ve ever been paid?
I receive a lot of compliments and it’s hard to pick out just the one. People are starting to talk about me, in fact, and now is the time that I need to be mentally strong. Some players start to get a little carried away when people talk about them, but that’s no good at all. I just tell myself: ‘Stay the way you are. Keep slogging away. Keep working.’ Compli-ments are nice but you can’t get big-headed.
You’re just recovering from an operation on your right ankle. Have you had a visit, a call or a message or anything that’s made you feel especially happy?
Yes, I’ve had a lot of messages – and I’m still getting them – from people I don’t know. In fact, I don’t even know how they got my number. They call me every day to wish me a speedy recovery and I thank them. It’s very heart-warming and it lifts my spirits.
You’ve signed a five-year contract with AS Monaco. What are your goals with Les Rouges et Blancs and what is your personal objective?
The most important thing is to do as well as I can for the club. It goes without saying that I want to work, improve my game here and win trophies. I want to develop as a player here.
What have you learned from your new Portuguese coach Leonardo Jardim?
He’s already given me a lot. When I first came here I struggled to find my place on the pitch, but I’ve learned quite a lot since then. He calls me, gives me advice and shows me how to do things. I feel I’ve come on quite a lot already.
Is it true that when you took up football back home in Bamako you used to play barefoot?
Yes, I played barefoot at the Jean-Marc Guillou Football Academy, but that’s what they ask for there. We all started playing barefoot, from an early age, and we had objectives that we had to reach. Once you achieve them, then you start to play in boots.
Where do you live in Monaco?In the Jardin Exotique district. It’s got
some great views of the principality and the sea.
What’s an average day for you?I get up pretty early and my days are fairly
normal. When I’m not training or getting treatment, I stay at home. I go out for a run now and then, of course, but I lead a pretty calm life.
What do you do in your spare time? Is there anything you’re passionate about?
Yes, I do have a passion outside football, and that’s music. My stereo is always on. I listen to a lot of African music. Å
Interview by Massimo Franchi
The winner of the adidas Golden Ball at the FIFA U-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015, a feat he followed up by signing a five-year contract with AS Monaco,
Mali midfielder Adama Traore is now aiming to help Mali reach Russia 2018.
“Mali have a good chance of qualifying”
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P l a c e : P o r t o A l e g r e , B r a z i l
Da t e : 8 O c t o b e r 2 0 1 2
T im e : 2 . 1 0 p . m .
Ph o t o g r a ph e r : C a i o V i l e l a
First Love
fotogloria
21T H E F I FA W E E K LY
Big Five Phil Neville, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Paul Scholes (from left) are the owners of Salford City FC.
S A L F O R D C I T Y
22 T H E F I FA W E E K LY
The BBC cameras will again be present at Moor Lane stadium on the evening of 4 December 2015. After all, success breeds success. When the part-time and hobby footballers from Salford City, who are also known as The Ammies, played against Notts County three weeks ago, 3.5 million people watched the game on television. That is a record so far this season: even the heavyweight clash between
Manchester United and Liverpool only attracted 2.6 million viewers in Britain.
Those 3.5 million spectators witnessed more than a David-versus-Go-liath clash; the cameras frequently focused on the former Manchester United stars Gary Neville, Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes. Wrapped up in windproof jackets and hoodies, they stood in the middle of the crowd and held their heads in their hands, or hugged each other, at the same time as everyone else. Alongside David Beckham, Phil Neville and Ryan Giggs, who is currently assistant coach at Man United, Gary Neville, Butt and Scholes are part of the ‘Class of 1992’, the crop of players that rose through the ranks at United and repaid the club by winning an unpar-alleled haul of trophies.
Last summer five of them bought Salford City FC together; only Beckham was not involved as he opted to invest his money in Miami. “We experienced some fantastic times as footballers, “ said Gary Neville. “But when that was over there was a void. A void we want to fill with new, fantastic experiences.”
New toilets or a new striker?Shortly before the match against Notts County, the BBC broadcasted an excellent documentary tracing Salford City’s first year under the stew-ardship of the glamorous former players. It showed Gary Neville on his first visit to inspect the stadium, where the lettering ‘Salford City’ on one
England’s most famous local club
S A L F O R D C I T Y
In summer 2014, five former stars took over a small football club on the outskirts of Manchester. Now Salford City are causing quite a stir, writes Hanspeter Kuenzler in London.
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of the stands was missing the letter ‘C’. Upon seeing the horrendous state of the toilets, Neville said: “The question is, a new centre forward or new toilets?”
The film also highlights how sceptical fans were initially, especially when the quintet introduced Singaporean businessman Peter Lim as a super-rich backer. One fan aggressively exclaimed: “Premier League ar-rogance! They think they can buy everything!” It was not until months later that tempers began to cool off. Babs Gaskill, who has volunteered in the snack kiosk for 26 years, will now work out of a brand new booth, while the terraces have been freshly painted. For the first time ever, the players are also given a nutritious meal before each game.
The five former players are not the first celebrities to pour their pas-sion and money into a football club. Pop stars have done so in the past: Elton John did exemplary work with fans thanks to his enthusiasm at Watford; Fatboy Slim has a 12 per cent stake in Brighton & Hove Albion and regularly hosts charity events, while One Direction’s Louis Tomlin-son has not given up on taking over Doncaster Rovers, despite failing once already.
However, none of those stars were ever as closely involved in the day-to-day running of the club as Scholes, Butt, Giggs and the Nevilles are. They have all had a strong bond with Salford City since childhood, aim to build a 25,000 capacity all-seater stadium and earn promotion into the professional league.
Dirty Old TownSalford lies four kilometres from Manchester city centre and is an indus-trial town typical of many in northern England, although certainly live-lier than it used to be thanks to Salford University. The Barton Swing Aqueduct, the only navigable aqueduct of its kind in the world, is a pop-ular tourist attraction here. The pre-match atmosphere is created by a cover version of the legendary Pogues song ‘Dirty Old Town’, and the lyrics resonate not only with the older fans but also with the new owners. “It’s an unbelievable experience being owner of a football club,” said Gary Neville. “It’s a privilege we cannot misuse.”
In the first round of the FA Cup, when those 3.5 million viewers tuned in on their television sets, Salford City played Notts County, the oldest football club in English football. County are currently floundering in mid-table in the fourth tier, a long way below where they expect to be. Naturally, Moor Lane was sold out with 1,400 fans who had never seen their heroes play in such exalted company and they created a rousing atmosphere. Babs Gaskill has never grilled so many burgers or made so many cups of tea in her life.
The first half ended goalless but just 20 seconds into the second period the fairytale began when striker Danny Webber, who has previ-ously played for Watford, Sheffield United and Leeds, steered a perfectly delivered cross into the net to put Salford 1-0 up. Then, in the 73rd min-ute, substitute Richie Allen skipped past three defenders to score his
S A L F O R D C I T Y
Spirit of the FA Cup Salford City fans during their team’s 2-0 win over Notts County.
3.5 million viewers watched the game against Notts County,
a record figure this season.
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S A L FOR D C I T Y FOO T B A L L C L UBNickname The AmmiesFounded 1940 as Salford CentralHome ground Moor LaneCapacity 1,400Owners Peter Lim (50%), Phil Neville (10%), Gary Neville
(10%), Nicky Butt (10%), Paul Scholes (10%) and Ryan Giggs (10%)
Chairman Karen BairdManagers Anthony Johnson and Bernard MorleyLeague Northern Premier League
team’s second to make the final score 2-0. “Goal of the season!” screamed the BBC commentator. Overjoyed fans and club owners hugged each oth-er with tears in their eyes.
Hartlepool test on 4 DecemberA total of 736 clubs registered to take part in the FA Cup and Salford knocked out City Whitby, Curzon Ashton, Bradford Park Avenue and Southport in the qualifying rounds. Those triumphs alone were a minor sensation. Salford play in the Northern Premier League in the seventh tier of English football, and of those four sides they defeated, three play in higher divisions.
On 4 December, The Ammies face another opponent from the fourth division, Hartlepool United, in the next round of the FA Cup. On that Friday evening Salford City will undoubtedly be the most popular foot-ball club in Manchester. Å
Legendary evening Substitute Richie Allen scored the second goal in the 2-0 win over Notts County.
S A L F O R D C I T Y
Tea lady Babs has worked at Salford City FC for 26 years.
Salford is an industrial town typical of many in northern England,
located close to Manchester.
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25T H E F I FA W E E K LY
FOOTBALL FOR HOPE
To fi nd out more, visit the Sustainability section on FIFA.com.
Football for Hope is our global commitment to building a better future through football. To date, we have supported over 550 socially-responsible community projects that use football as a tool for social development, improving the lives and prospects of young people and their surrounding communities
FIFPro, the worldwide players’ union, and FIFA announced the final 55-player shortlist for the FIFA FIFPro World XI 2015. The FIFA FIFPro World XI is decided by the players, for the players. It in-
volves votes from nearly 25,000 professional footballers from about 70 different countries. They select one goalkeeper, four defenders, three midfielders and three forwards. FIFPro and its national affili-ates are responsible for gathering votes from professional footballers worldwide. It is the only global award that truly represents the views of those who play the beautiful game.
The 55-player shortlist: (home country/club)
Goalkeepers (5)Gianluigi Buffon (Italy/Juventus), Iker Casillas (Spain/FC Porto), David De Gea (Spain/Manchester United), Keylor Navas (Costa Rica/Real Madrid) and Manuel Neuer (Germany/FC Bayern Munich).
Defenders (20)David Alaba (Austria/FC Bayern Munich), Jordi Alba (Spain/FC Bar-celona), Jérôme Boateng (Germany/FC Bayern Munich), Daniel Carvajal (Spain/Real Madrid), Giorgio Chiellini (Italy/Juventus), Dani Alves (Brazil/FC Barcelona), David Luiz (Brazil/Paris Saint-Germain), Diego Godín (Uruguay/Atletico Madrid), Mats Hummels (Germany/Borussia Dortmund), Branislav Ivanović (Serbia/Chelsea), Vincent Kompany (Belgium/Manchester City), Philipp Lahm (Germany/FC Bayern Munich), Marcelo (Brazil/Real Madrid), Javier Mascherano (Argentina/FC Barcelona), Pepe (Portugal/Real Madrid), Gerard Piqué (Spain/FC Barcelona), Sergio Ramos (Spain/Real Madrid), John Terry (England/Chelsea), Thiago Silva (Brazil/Paris Saint-Germain) and Raphaël Varane (France/Real Madrid).
Midfielders (15)Thiago Alcântara (Spain/FC Bayern Munich), Xabi Alonso (Spain/FC Bayern Munich), Sergio Busquets (Spain/FC Barcelona), Eden Hazard (Belgium/Chelsea), Andrés Iniesta (Spain/FC Barcelona), Toni Kroos (Germany/Real Madrid), Luka Modrić (Croatia/Real Madrid), Andrea Pirlo (Italy/New York City FC), Paul Pogba (France/Juventus), Ivan Rakitić (Croatia/FC Barcelona), James Rodríguez (Colombia/Real Madrid), David Silva (Spain/Manchester City), Yaya Touré (Ivory Coast/Manchester City), Marco Verratti (Italy/Paris Saint-Germain) and Arturo Vidal (Chile/FC Bayern Munich). Strikers (15)Sergio Agüero (Argentina/Manchester City), Gareth Bale (Wales/Real Madrid), Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid), Douglas Costa (Brazil/FC Bayern Munich), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Real Madrid), Zlatan Ibrahimović (Sweden/Paris Saint-Germain), Robert Lewan dowski (Poland/FC Bayern Munich), Lionel Messi (Argentina/FC Barcelona), Thomas Müller (Germany/FC Bayern Munich), Neymar (Brazil/FC Barcelona), Arjen Robben (Netherlands/FC Bayern Munich), Wayne Rooney (England/Manchester United), Alexis Sánchez (Chile/Arsenal), Luis Suárez (Uruguay/FC Barcelona) and Carlos Tevez (Argentina/Boca Juniors).
The final FIFA FIFPro World XI will be announced at the FIFA Ballon d’Or award ceremony at the Kongresshaus in Zurich on 11 January 2016.
F I F A F I F P R O W O R L D X I 2 015 P R E S I D E N T I A L N O T E
Best wishes, Issa Hayatou
55 players announced
One of our biggest responsibilities is to involve and support more young footballers around the world so that they have a better chance of reaching their potential.
The FIFA U-17 and U-20 World Cups offer the best young women and men the opportunity to compete at international level. At national level, however, many young players lack the challenge that well- organised domestic competitions can provide. Investing in sustain-able youth football development is a vital part of the process: proper competitions give girls and boys the conditions they need to grow.
In countries that do not have this structure, there is often no clear “pathway” between grassroots football and the senior game, which means that it is harder for senior players to fulfil their early promise, the standard of club football lags behind that of other national leagues, and national teams will struggle to qualify for tournaments.
This lack of progress can impact on the investment potential of football, creating a cycle of slow development and low funding that can be tough to break.
This year, FIFA has launched an exciting pilot project in Malawi to develop and promote youth football in a sustainable way. Working with the Football Association of Malawi, we are establishing region-al youth leagues, where talented young players from all over the country can play together in teams of similar quality, guided by trained coaches over full, demanding seasons.
With equipment, technical support and funding, these leagues can also improve sponsorship and promotional opportunities, and inspire more young Malawians of all abilities to play.
We aim to roll this model out to other member associations in the future, so that more young players, referees and coaches can work together to raise national football standards and provide the foundations for greater participation in football.
Young people are the future of football. FIFA and its member associations have a duty to help them live out their dreams.
The future of football
Find more information on http://www.fifa.com/ballondor/world11
27T H E F I FA W E E K LY
After the final whistle sounded in Gothen-burg to mark the end of Germany’s match for third place against France at the 1958 FIFA World Cup, reserve goal-keeper Heinrich Kwiatkowski turned to head coach Sepp Herberger and pleaded:
“Please don’t pick me anymore.” Unsurprising-ly, the request marked the end of Kwiatkowski’s international career. So what had happened to make the talented keeper throw the towel in?
Born on 16 July 1926, Kwiatkowski deliv-ered a string of exceptional league performanc-es throughout his career, featuring for Schalke 04, Rot-Weiss Essen and Borussia Dortmund in the Oberliga West, then one of Germany’s top divisions, from his debut on 14 September 1947 until hanging up his gloves on 11 May 1963. He also won two German championship titles with BVB and made a total of 300 appearances for Die Schwarzgelben.
“Kwiat” and his famous fistsTo many, Kwiatkowski was simply known as “Kwiat” or “Heini Fausten” (“Heini Fists”) in reference to his legendary punched clearances. Receiving a call-up to the national team is a special moment for any footballer, and repre-senting one’s country at a FIFA World Cup an even greater privilege. Heinrich Kwiatkowski was thus full of pride when Herberger first se-lected him for the 1954 FIFA World Cup in Swit-zerland. Although Toni Turek was Germany’s first-choice goalkeeper, the man from Gelsen-kirchen joined the squad as reserve keeper, ready to shoulder responsibility and replace Turek if called upon. Kwiatkowski travelled to Lake Thun for Germany’s preparatory camp, where the most memorable part of the visit was not the gruelling training sessions but an im-promptu dip in the lake.
Kwiatkowski boarded a boat with the squad’s third-choice goalkeeper Heinz Kubsch and when the pair went on deck for a cigarette, non-swimmer “Kwiat” fell overboard, but for-tunately managed to reach the shore none the worse for his unexpected adventure. The news came as a relief to coach Sepp Herberger, who picked his second-choice keeper for Germany’s second group match against Hungary after their comfortable 4-1 opening victory over Tur-key. With the Germans able to qualify for the knockout stages even if they lost to the Hun-garians, provided they emerged victorious from a play-off match against a Turkish team they had already soundly defeated, Herberger fielded his B team in an attempt to obscure Germany’s true strengths from the Mighty Magyars.
Two days before the game, Herberger approached “Kwiat” and asked him: “Are you confident enough to play against Hungary?” After answering in the affirmative, Kwiat-kowski took to the field for the second group match full of anticipation, but his excitement
H I S T O R Y
At home in goal Heinrich Kwiatkowski during his time with Borussia Dortmund.
Germany’s luckless goalkeeperGermany reserve goalkeeper Heinrich Kwiatkowski was on the receiving end during his FIFA World Cup appearances in Switzerland in 1954 and in Sweden in 1958, conceding 14 goals in just two matches.
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quickly gave way to disillusionment. Germany had planned for Hungary shooting from range, but instead they persistently weaved their way deep inside the area before materialising unmarked in front of Kwiatkowski. Powerless to stop them, helpless Heini found himself on the receiving end of the Hungarians’ striking prowess.
Eight goals on World Cup debutFour goals from Sandor Kocsis, a brace from Nandor Hidegkuti and a strike apiece for Ferenc Puskas and Jozsef Toth meant “Kwiat” spent much of his FIFA World Cup debut pick-ing the ball out of the back of the net. The match ended 8-3 and Kwiatkowski later re-called: “I prayed they wouldn’t reach double digits.” Almost any team in the world would have struggled to contain the Mighty Magyars that day, but the defeat gnawed at the German goalkeeper nonetheless. Realising that his second-choice shotstopper had suffered a knock to his confidence, Herberger told him: “Your nerves are a little frayed now; I can leave you out for the next few games.”
So it was that “Heini Fausten” returned to his place on the bench as Germany beat Turkey 7-2 in their play-off match. Toni Turek then stood firm to deny Yugoslavia in a 2-0 win be-fore helping Die Mannschaft to a 6-1 triumph against Austria in the semi-final. Kwiatkowski was watching from the sidelines once more as the Germans faced Hungary again in the ’Mir-acle of Bern’, then they miraculously around their fortunes from the group stages to win the game 3-2. Germany were world champions and so was Heinrich Kwiatkowski. The reserve goalkeeper even managed to take something positive from his solitary appearance, observ-ing: “Perhaps those eight goals were good for the Final, as they meant Hungary underesti-mated us. They probably thought they could pick up where they left off in the second game.”
Kwiatkowski could not have known then that history would repeat itself four years later at the 1958 FIFA World Cup. Germany lost 3-1 to hosts Sweden in the semi-final that year, so coach Sepp Herberger decided to use the match for third place as a chance to give a run-out to
the squad’s least-utilised players. Heinrich Kwiatkowski led out the side after replacing first-choice keeper Fritz Herkenrath.
Appearing in another FIFA World Cup match as part of a second-string eleven unac-customed to playing alongside each other led to another heavy defeat as Germany went down 6-3 to France. Conceding eight goals on his World Cup debut and another six in his next appearance four years later proved too much for poor Kwiatkowski. The shattered custodian told Herberger he had had enough and with that, his international career was over.
The shotstopper’s experiences of pulling on a Germany shirt were not all bad though. They
H I S T O R Y
Battling it out for the championship Kwiatkowski came away empty-handed from the 1961 final against Nuremberg as BVB lost 3-0.
certainly frayed his nerves almost to breaking point, but they also made him a world champi-on. World Cup record aside, he is still celebrat-ed as a hero in Dortmund long after his death on 23 May 2008. BVB’s current generation of heroes cross Heinrich Kwiatkowski Strasse to reach the Brackel training complex – a tribute to a man who, despite conceding an unusually high number of goals at international level, helped shape an entire era for Die Schwarzgelben in the 1950s and 1960s. Å
Annette Braun
“I prayed they wouldn’t reach double digits.”
Heinrich Kwiatkowski
An unhappy World Cup debut Kwiatkowski could only watch as the ball flew past in Germany’s 1954 group match against Hungary.
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0731 �� �� 1P 215x289.indd 1 15. 8. 6. �� 8:50
The week ly column by our s t a f f wr iters
F R E E K I C K S P O T L I G H T O N
GENERAL INFORMATION
Country:
Jordan
FIFA Trigramme:
JOR
Confederation:
AFC
Continent:
Asia
Capital:
Amman
GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION
Surface area:
89,342 km²
Highest point:
Jabal Ramm 1,754 m
Neighbouring seas and oceans:
Red Sea, Dead Sea and
Gulf of Aqaba
MEN’S FOOTBALLFIFA Ranking:
82nd
World Cup:
No appearances
WOMEN’S FOOTBALLFIFA Ranking:
58th
World Cup:
No appearances
LATEST RESULTSMen’s:
Jordan - Kyrgyzstan 0:1
17 November 2015
Women’s:
Vietnam - Jordan 2:1
20 September 2015
FIFA INVESTMENTSSince 2004:
$ 6,480,000
Sarah Steiner
Winter has arrived in Europe, with bitterly cold temperatures and the first snowfalls heralding the start of advent. Christmas is
only four weeks away and preparations are already in full swing. Chocolate Santas are on sale in supermarkets, Yuletide tree decorations gleam in assorted colours on shelves and toy departments are bulging with teddy bears, building blocks and video games. Christmas has arrived in the world of football too.
In Dortmund, the biggest Christmas tree in the world has been erected in the middle of the festive market at Hansaplatz every year since 1966. Made up of 1,700 Norwegian spruces, it stands at a huge 45 metres, uses 48,000 lights, 20 candles that reach up to 2.5 metres, as well as other illuminations. At the very top there is a four-metre angel weighing 200 kilograms. The whole process of setting it up takes four weeks.
One bright morning, however, the city’s inhabitants were stunned and could only look at their tree in disbelief. What was that flag sitting at the top? A blue and white one with one letter and two digits: S04. Right in the middle of enemy territory. There is surely no fixture in Germany as explosive as the Revier-derby between Borussia Dortmund and Schalke. It is a long-standing rivalry that has become part of each city’s self-image. So how did the Schalke flag arrive at the top of Dortmund’s tree?
The scaffolding company responsible for putting up the Christmas tree has done so for many years, yet among its employees are both Dortmund and Schalke fans. It was the latter who placed their club’s flag at the top. Although the prank was short-lived – the firm’s Dort-mund supporters quickly replaced it with a black and yellow flag – the perpetrators will have to dig deep in their pockets. Company manager Hans-Peter Arens was merciless in imposing a 500 Euro fine, which will be do-nated to charity.
The Dortmund fans, however, escaped reprimand. “I can’t fine anyone for putting a Borussia Dortmund flag on the tree,” said Arens. Indeed, the only punishable offence in Dortmund is being a Schalke fan. Å
Christmas capers
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M I R R O R I M AG E
T H E N
Liverpool, England
1983
Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobbelaar shows off his best wild dive.
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M I R R O R I M AG E
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Barça fans depict Lionel Messi as a “SuperMessi” at the UEFA Champions League final.
Berlin, Germany
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“Emotionally, it was a very, very strong moment. We were all united in this
moment of communion, which obviously lifts the spirits because you feel it in your
heart. It’s beautiful, it’s moving, it’s grandiose. It’s very strong. This will be shown round the world and will show
unity. Football is a global game. It is not about religion or race. We need to stand
tall together in these tough times.”France coach Didier Deschamps paid tribute to
England’s supporters for the respect they showed during the friendly match at Wembley
“They said they were going to send me to retirement. I sent their whole
nation into retirement.”Zlatan Ibrahimovic after defeating Denmark in
the play-offs to send Sweden to UEFA EURO 2016
“Paddy only had a seven week contract, we weren’t expecting it, but Paddy came to see us and said that he loves the club,
he loves the fact we gave him an opportu-nity, but he doesn’t feel like he is going to
earn his money now he is injured. Quite incredibly he has decided he wants to cancel the contract. Incredibly he had
guaranteed money there, but he has said he can’t take money off the football club,
which is quite a unique circumstance.”Bury manager David Flitcroft on former Republic
of Ireland goalkeeper Paddy Kenny voluntarily cancelling his short-term contract 13 days into his new role after he tore his calf in training because
he wanted to save the club money
“I believe having Iran here, in a World Cup qualification game, is the single most important milestone in Guam football history. To have a world-class team, a
world-class coach, here on our shores is going to do so much for football and our development … We want the local fans to see world-class football here, live,
because we just don’t watch it enough.”Guam head coach Gary White
There is something touching, but some-times also unsettling about watching a young child, fresh out of kindergarten,
play football. Especially when it is a prodi-gy, a little maestro, a player so talented it is clear at first glance that they could have a great career ahead of them. The propor-tions are not yet quite right: the ball seems huge next to their tiny body and frail-look-ing legs, which run and kick with all their might and barely appear capable of with-standing the physical obstacles they meet on the pitch.
Looking at footage today of Lionel Messi playing as a child, this discrepancy is especially noticeable; after all, Messi dif-fered from his contemporaries not only in that he was a small child, but that he was very small. It is precisely these archive im-ages that make the new documentary by Alex de la Iglesia so compelling. Simply ti-tled ’Messi’, the film depicts the career of the superstar, starting at the very begin-ning when his grandmother took him to a football pitch for the very first time back in Argentina, and goes right through to his triumphs with FC Barcelona. De la Iglesia not only portrays the protagonist’s life with archive footage of Messi talking and playing, he manages to bring former class-mates, siblings, coaches and team-mates together to talk about him.
Johan Cruyff, Cesar Luis Menotti, Andres Iniesta, Gerard Pique, Javier Mascherano and Jorge Valdano, among others, are involved in a lively discussion. How should Messi be described? “The best player in the world”? “The best player of all time”? Or, and this is meant respectfully, as “a monster”? Even his colleagues are unsure. Indeed, perhaps the words used to express the inexpressible do not even matter; it is much more revealing to see the way the eyes of those who know him so well light up, and how great and honest is their admiration for such an exceptional player.
Just as it is possible to talk about the beautiful game in simple terms, there is no need to complicate matters when describ-ing Messi. A boy who played alongside him as a 13-year-old summed him up thus: “Whenever there’s a problem you just have to give him the ball. He’ll solve it.” Å
The problem solver
Ronald Düker
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FIFA PARTNER
In Turning Point , personali t ies re f lec t on a decisive moment in their l ives .
T U R N I N G P O I N T
NameAlexander FischingerDate and place of birth10 April 1964, Triberg, GermanyClubs played for1970–1995 FC SchonachClubs coached1998–1999 FC Teningen1999–2000 FC Schonach2000–2001 Freiburger FC youth team2001–2003 FC Denzlingen youth team2003–2007 SF Elzach2008 SC Freiburg Women2009–2010 SV Endingen2011–2015 SV WaldkirchSince 2015 SC Sand Women
It was 1 July 1995 and my life hung by a thin rope. It should have been a day of celebra-tion but it ended in near tragedy and sent my life spiralling in a different direction. It was my stag party, and in our high spir-its my friends had attached me to a pulley
by a thin rope and pulled me up some scaf-folding. Laughter broke out because everyone knew I didn’t like heights. I laughed too. Then, about eight metres up, the rope snapped.
When I woke up in hospital, two priests, one Catholic and one Protestant, were sitting at my bedside. Nobody knew whether I was going to survive the fall. My pelvis was bro-ken in three places; my knee and wrist were in pieces. Nowadays, it’s less obvious than it used to be just how much metal is holding my body together.
I immediately asked the doctor if I would ever be able to play football again. “Forget it,” he said, shaking his head. That was perhaps my lowest moment because football was all I had ever known.
There followed a year and a half of hospi-tal visits and operations. It required unwaver-ing discipline and plenty of physiotherapy but eventually I was able to walk again. I could also ski and cycle, but playing football was impossible. Instead, two friends and I set up a youth academy while I channelled all my efforts into becoming a coach. I passed the relevant courses to obtain my licence and then took charge of several different teams.
I consider it a gift that I have now been a coach for over 15 years and enjoyed relative success. Without the accident, I would prob-ably still be a postman and never have met
so many interesting people. One of the high points of my coaching career was undoubt-edly winning the Sudbadischer Pokal [the South Baden Cup] with amateur side SV Waldkirch and so reaching the first round of the DFB-Pokal, Germany’s major domestic cup competition.
Since the summer I have been in charge of SC Sand, my second coaching job in the Women’s Bundesliga after SC Freiburg in 2008. Despite our good start to the season, we’re not dreaming of giddy heights just yet. I know how that can end up, after all. Having said that, they’re a hungry young group who want success. Just like me. Å
Alexander Fischinger was speaking to Rainer Hennies
A tragic end to his stag party proved the beginning of a successful coaching career for Black Forest native Alexander Fischinger.
An evening that changed my life
imag
o
37T H E F I FA W E E K LY
1 Belgium 2 1440
2 Germany 0 1388
3 Argentina -2 1383
4 Portugal 0 1364
5 Chile 4 1288
6 Spain 0 1287
7 Colombia -2 1233
8 Brazil -1 1208
9 England 1 1179
10 Austria 1 1130
11 Switzerland 1 1073
12 Uruguay 8 1051
13 Italy 4 1040
14 Romania -1 1039
15 Wales -7 1032
16 Netherlands -2 976
17 Czech Republic -2 974
18 Turkey 19 941
19 Croatia -3 924
20 Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 923
21 Ecuador 10 921
22 Côte d’Ivoire -1 890
23 Russia 3 885
24 Mexico 3 881
24 France -2 881
26 Algeria -7 872
27 Slovakia -9 857
28 Ukraine -4 806
29 Northern Ireland 6 797
30 Ghana -5 793
31 Iceland -8 792
32 Cape Verde Islands 9 762
33 Hungary 0 759
33 USA -4 759
35 Denmark -7 743
36 Albania -4 723
37 Greece 7 718
38 Poland 5 712
39 Senegal -1 678
40 Costa Rica 2 671
41 Tunisia -5 668
42 Republic of Ireland 12 659
43 Iran -4 651
44 Scotland -4 649
45 Sweden 0 647
46 Norway -12 637
47 Paraguay 14 610
48 Korea Republic 5 606
49 Serbia 14 605
50 Japan 5 603
51 Cameroon -3 597
52 Congo -3 593
53 Guinea 2 589
54 Trinidad and Tobago 5 588
55 Congo DR 5 587
56 Finland 8 586
57 Egypt -6 583
57 Peru -7 583
59 Nigeria -7 582
60 Australia -2 573
61 Jamaica -4 559
61 Israel -14 559
63 Mali -1 552
64 Slovenia -18 547
65 Panama 0 515
66 Bulgaria 12 497
67 United Arab Emirates 3 495
68 Uganda 7 491
69 Equatorial Guinea -2 487
70 Belarus 28 479
71 Uzbekistan 3 477
71 Zambia 0 477
73 Haiti 4 470
73 Gabon -8 470
75 South Africa -2 461
76 Cyprus 38 444
77 Bolivia -10 442
78 Montenegro -6 426
79 Morocco 1 422
80 Saudi Arabia 8 417
80 Antigua and Barbuda 3 417
82 Jordan 17 411
83 Venezuela -14 408
84 China PR -3 403
85 Qatar 7 397
86 Liberia 9 394
87 Iraq -2 392
88 Togo -9 386
89 Faroe Islands -4 385
90 Estonia -3 370
91 Guatemala -9 367
92 Oman 10 365
93 Burkina Faso -17 363
94 El Salvador 0 361
95 Honduras -6 359
96 Rwanda -3 356
97 Malawi 4 351
98 Angola -1 344
99 Latvia 4 342
100 Nicaragua -5 341
101 St Kitts and Nevis 11 340
102 Canada 2 335
103 Benin -3 333
104 Mauritania -15 328
105 Niger 15 327
105 Botswana 6 327
107 Burundi 6 321
108 Cuba 9 312
109 Zimbabwe 0 305
110 Central African Republic 16 302
111 Georgia -1 301
112 Aruba 3 299
113 Libya -8 297
114 Ethiopia -6 294
115 Bahrain 8 293
115 Azerbaijan -10 293
117 Belize 1 292
118 Madagascar 9 290
118 Namibia 7 290
120 Korea DPR 9 288
121 Sierra Leone 0 281
121 Turkmenistan 34 281
123 Lithuania -7 279
124 Kyrgyzstan 22 277
125 Kenya 6 274
125 Mozambique -18 274
127 Armenia -36 271
128 Sudan -44 267
129 St Vincent and the Grenadines -7 262
130 Swaziland 5 258
131 Kazakhstan 11 256
132 Syria -9 254
133 Kuwait -5 252
134 South Sudan 10 246
135 Tanzania 1 245
136 Chad 39 240
137 Philippines -3 236
138 Palestine -8 233
139 FYR Macedonia -7 230
140 Lebanon 0 228
141 Guinea-Bissau 6 216
142 Barbados 12 206
143 St Lucia -4 204
144 Thailand 1 202
145 Hong Kong 8 199
146 Luxembourg -4 197
147 Vietnam 2 193
147 Lesotho -7 193
149 Dominican Republic -30 187
150 Curaçao 2 182
151 Bermuda -13 181
152 Guyana -15 179
152 Singapore 5 179
154 Moldova -22 177
155 Guam -5 170
156 Afghanistan -6 168
157 São Tomé e Príncipe 36 165
158 Malta -1 164
159 New Zealand -11 163
160 Tajikistan 0 159
161 Myanmar 2 157
162 Timor-Leste 8 155
M E N ’ S W O R L D R A N K I N G
Rank Team +/- Points
163 Liechtenstein -7 154
164 Samoa -2 152
165 American Samoa -1 145
166 Maldives 10 141
167 Grenada -8 137
168 Gambia -7 135
169 Cook Islands -3 132
170 Puerto Rico -5 129
171 Malaysia 0 127
172 India -5 122
173 Mauritius -5 117
174 Indonesia -3 108
175 Dominica -1 104
176 Laos 3 90
177 Comoros 16 89
178 US Virgin Islands 0 88
179 Yemen 1 81
180 Bangladesh 2 80
180 New Caledonia -11 80
180 Bhutan -7 80
183 Cambodia 3 78
184 Suriname -3 77
185 Pakistan -8 76
186 Brunei Darussalam 1 74
187 Chinese Taipei -4 71
188 Montserrat -4 67
189 Seychelles -5 60
190 Fiji -1 59
191 Tahiti -3 56
192 Nepal -2 51
193 Cayman Islands -2 49
194 Sri Lanka -3 45
195 Macau -2 44
196 San Marino 0 35
197 Turks and Caicos Islands 0 33
198 British Virgin Islands 1 27
199 Solomon Islands -2 26
200 Tonga 0 17
201 Vanuatu 0 13
202 Eritrea 0 8
203 Mongolia 0 6
203 Somalia 0 6
205 Andorra 0 5
206 Papua New Guinea 0 4
207 Anguilla 1 0
207 Bahamas 1 0
207 Djibouti -1 0
http://www.fifa.com/worldranking/index.html
Rank Team +/- Points Rank Team +/- Points Rank Team +/- Points
LeaderMoves into top tenMoves out of top tenMatches played in totalMost matches playedBiggest move by pointsBiggest move by ranksBiggest drop by pointsBiggest drop by ranks
Belgium (up 2)Austria (10th, up 1)Wales (15th, down 7)172Ethiopia (5 matches)Turkey (up 224 points)Chad (up 39 ranks)Wales (down 163 points)Sudan (down 44 ranks)
Last updated:5 November 2015
38 T H E F I FA W E E K LY
P U Z Z L E
1 9 5 4
4 7
5 6 9 2
2 3 5 7
2 7
9 1 4 6
7 8 6 3
9 2
4 9 7 5
2 9 8 1 3 6
5
5 1 3
5 2 3 8
3 8
3 6 9 4
3 9 6
7
9 4 3 6 1 7
7
6 7 5 4 3
4 3 1 8
6 2
2 1 6 3 4 9
7 1
8 2 3 6
5 6 4 9 7
4
1
2
3
EASY
MEDIUM
HARD
The objective of Sudoku is to fill a 9x9 grid with digits so that each of the numbers from 1 to 9 appears exactly once in each column, row and 3x3 sub-grid.
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39T H E F I FA W E E K LY
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