March Madness Part 2

20 EUR for 3 course dinner in my hotel in Nicosia, Cyprus.

 

a very nice dinner while the Swiss team ate their dinner in a private room nearby.

 

after dinner, I ran into 3 Swiss stars dressed in shorts and tshirts in the hotel lobby.

 

they looked like they were ready for the beach except it was 11 PM and the beach was at least an hour away.

 

twin brothers?

the Swiss team has a very strict dress code. Suits and ties when traveling and team outfits while in hotel.

 

I came to Cyprus to support my Swiss team in the WC 2014 qualification.

 

somehow UEFA allowed this match to be played one day after the other 2 matches in the same group.

 

so the Swiss knew that a win would put them in pole position for Brasil 2014 at the halfway point.

 

looking at the players on the Swiss team and then the players on Cyprus. before the game, the Swiss was the clear favorite.

 

can you name a player from Cyprus?

 

 

I brought a lot of cash to spend and to help the local economy.

 

Cyprus needs cash and I thought if all the Swiss fans brought in the cash, may be Cyprus will let us leave with 3 points.

 

Cyprus was bottom of the group and is likely to stay there. so they dont need 3 points.

 

 but I had a bad feeling.

 

the Swiss team often has troubles against smaller teams, especially an island in the Mediterranean.

 

Cyprus had some good results over the years against big teams like France, Germany, Spain and Portugal.

 

The stadium was quite empty and the wind was strong.

 

Minute 15, the Swiss star Shaqiri got the ball alone in the box and on his favorite left side. His shot was off target. bad omen.

 

The Swiss had several chances but nothing on target. The best chance was for Cyprus when a looping shot from the left beat the Swiss goalkeeper but the ball hit the post and came out.

 

the game ended 0-0.

 

it was a game full of action but my favorite moment occurred halfway in the second half.

 

the opposite tribune was empty for most of the game but then a group of protesters entered (how they got in was a mystery!)

 

they had flares and a banner about 'Hands off Cypus.' they sang something. the FIFA official was very nervous.

 

just as quickly as they arrived, the protesters orderly departed after 10 minutes.

 

all the Cyprus fans around me applauded the protesters.

 

 

 

the next morning, the Swiss team ran into me in the hotel.

 

I asked my favorite Europa League goalie Yann Sommer for a photo and wished him good luck against Tottenham.

 

 

then at the airport lounge, the match referee ran into me.

 

if only I had met him before the game. I had a lot of cash on me.

 

but then again, he is from Germany and I am sure all the Germans play by the rules.

 

 

 

 on to Paris for March Madness Part 3.

 

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after the Brasil-Italia match last Thursday evening, the Italian captain Gianluigi Buffon ran into me in the hotel bar.

 

He was a very nice guy.

 

When I met the team before the match, he was the only player who took time to pose for photos with some fans.

 

and he did it again when he left the bar at 1 AM!

 

Buffon is not only a World Champions, he is a gentleman.



 



 

March Madness Part 1

42 Swiss Francs.

that was the price of the cheeseburger at the hotel I am currently in.

it was a very good cheeseburger.

I had a table looking out to the lake

I did not look around when I got in the hotel restaurant but after I put in my order, I turned around and saw him.

He was with a group of 4 friends and I thought about waiting until they leave to ask for a photo.

then I realized there were others who might want to do the same AND may be the security guard would not allow the photo to be taken.

so I went over to ask for an autograph in English. and then I asked his friend to take a photo for me.

I said THANK YOU to him and he did not know what to say back in English

his friend, the one who took the photo, said YOU ARE WELCOME to me and then told him to say it to me.

tonight ITALIA vs BRASIL

so many classic games between these 2 countries.

this is the first of 3 big games in 1 week for me

March Madness??

I think he has more hair than I

Messi and Ibra

 

in a few hours, FC Barcelona will play AC Milan in the second leg of the Champions League Round of 16.

 

I was there in Milano for the first leg. I arrived at San Siro without a ticket and I hung out at the entrance for the away fans. When the Barca fans arrived, they were escorted by the Italian police from the parking lot straight to the gate. They were not allowed to wander around.

 

I knew this and I knew there would be some Barca fans with extra tickets. I found one who was desparate to sell and I bought a ticket for 50 EUR.

 

I was supporting Milan but had to stay quiet in the away section. Milan won 2-0 and Messi did not have a great game.

 



San Siro

 

I have nothing against Messi. I think he is a great player. and a really nice guy.

 

 

meeting Messi in Zurich



 

I just have problems when some fans say the only 'right' way to play football is the Barca way.

 

so many fans seem to fall in love with FC Barcelona. like these Polish fans.

 



 

 

Love is blind and lovers cannot see

the follies that themselves commit

 



four days before watching Messi in Milano, I went to Montbéliard, France to visit the Peugeot Museum and to see the most underrated player today.

 

Peugeot Museum

 

as a teenager, I followed the famous FC Sochaux team who made a great run in the 1980-1981 UEFA Cup and I had a poster of them. That team featured the great midfielder Bernard Genghini (trivia: he is one of only 5 players to have scored 2 goals from a direct free kick in the World Cup- not even Platini achieved this)

 

Genghini in the middle at the front



 

just like in Milano, I went to the stadium without a ticket. The match between FC Sochaux and PSG was sold out. I had to work hard to find a black market ticket for 70 EUR.

 

It was a great match. Sochaux (with a budget of 30 millions EUR) beat PSG (with a budeet of 300 millions EUR) 3-2. Ibrahimovich did not score and did not play well.

 

 

FC Sochaux vs PSG

 

still Ibra is a great player and in some way better than Messi.

 

Messi has achieved a lot but with only one club with players and a system to support him.

 

Ibra has achieved a lot while playing for Ajax, Juventus, Inter Milan, Barcelona, Milan and now PSG.



 

If PSG wins the French league this year, Ibra will have won championships with 6 different clubs.

 

I don't think Messi can do that.

 

Yet for all these achievements, Ibra has never finished in the top 3 of the Ballon d'Or. What a scandal.

 

and it got worse. His overhead goal against England last November was one of the top goals of all time and it was not even nominated among the top 10 goals at the FIFA Gala.

 

I hope next January, Ibra will be nominated for some award at the FIFA Gala. then I can finally meet him and ask him to sign my copy of his biography. and maybe his friend David will be there too.