quinta-feira, 29 de abril de 2010
segunda-feira, 26 de abril de 2010
quarta-feira, 21 de abril de 2010
segunda-feira, 12 de abril de 2010
terça-feira, 6 de abril de 2010
Novos Lusiadas
APENAS com uma vista
consigo sem ilusão
ver Portugal benfiquista
festejar o enterrro do murcão
NAVEGUEI mares sem fim
visitei terras e povos
Mas nunca vi nada assim
Como os murcões invejosos
D. AFONSO já sabia
o Infante adivinhava
Que um dia nas antas
O tal Pinto se c@g@va
PORTUGAL é muito antigo
Com passado glorioso
Cada Benfiquista é um amigo
Cada murcão um ranhoso
consigo sem ilusão
ver Portugal benfiquista
festejar o enterrro do murcão
NAVEGUEI mares sem fim
visitei terras e povos
Mas nunca vi nada assim
Como os murcões invejosos
D. AFONSO já sabia
o Infante adivinhava
Que um dia nas antas
O tal Pinto se c@g@va
PORTUGAL é muito antigo
Com passado glorioso
Cada Benfiquista é um amigo
Cada murcão um ranhoso
segunda-feira, 29 de março de 2010
WALL STREET JOURNAL
MAS ALGUÉM PÁRA O BENFICA?
"SL Benfica centerback Luisão is not who immediately comes to mind when you think of Brazilian soccer. Fittingly, for a man whose name literally means "Big Luís", his 6-foot-4 frame is long and muscular and, while his main responsibility is taking opposing center-forwards out of the game, he has a knack for popping up with important goals.
He did just that on Saturday, giving Benfica, at the top of the Portuguese League, the 1-0 win over second-place Sporting Braga which, in all likelihood will seal the club's record 32nd domestic championship. Benfica now boasts a six-point lead with six games to go and it's hard to see it throwing away the title.
You can only imagine what the party will be like when the crown does return to the club's Estadio do Luz for the first time since 2005. Benfica is far and away the country's best-supported club, and has more than 200,000 fans worldwide who pay around $34 a year for the privilege of calling themselves "socios" or club members. According to club officials, no team in the world has more paid-up members. And, for a relatively small nation like Portugal, its fan diaspora stretches all over the world. "Casa do Benfica" ("House of Benfica") fan clubs can be found in places as diverse as Johannesburg, South Africa; San Jose, California; Luanda, Angola; and Sydney, Australia.
And yet, Benfica has become something of a by-word for underachievement. In the past 15 years, the club has won just one league title, watching helpless as Porto—its rival from the north of the country—established itself as a force, not just in Portugal, but in Europe as well (witness the UEFA Cup and Champions League cups won under Jose Mourinho).
Last summer, Benfica rolled the dice and spent heavily to redress the imbalance. Some $45 million was spent, with just $7 million recouped in sales. In came, among others, Ramires—at 23 years old already a regular in midfield for Brazil—and Javi Garcia, a promising defensive midfielder from Real Madrid. One of the more interesting signings however was Argentine striker Javier Saviola, who rejoined playmaker Pablo Aimar a decade after the pair set South American soccer alight.
Back in the fall of 1999, Mr. Aimar and Mr. Saviola, 19 and 17 respectively at the time, formed a devastating partnership for Argentina's River Plate, whom they led to the Apertura and Clausura championships. Their precocious success led to call-ups to the national team and big-money moves to top European sides. Mr. Aimar joined Valencia in January 2001 for a club-record $32 million and, six months later, Mr. Saviola transferred to Barcelona for $20 million.
Both hit the ground running. Mr. Aimar led Valencia to two Spanish titles and a UEFA Cup, while Mr. Saviola scored sixty goals in his first three seasons at Barcelona. But then something unusual happened. Their performances dropped off severely. Mr. Aimar remained at Valencia until 2006, though by the end he was a shadow of former self. This was followed by two lackluster seasons at Zaragoza, the second blighted by relegation. Mr. Saviola was loaned out to Monaco and Seville, both times failing to make his mark. After another year as a bit player at Barcelona, arch-rival Real Madrid picked him up as a free agent, but, again he was a marginal figure, making just six league starts in two seasons.
But in the summer of 2008, Benfica took a gamble on Mr. Aimar and, after an injury-slowed first half of the campaign, he excelled towards the end of 2008-09 season. So much so that the club decided to repeat the exercise with Mr. Saviola, whom Real Madrid was looking to off-load.
The pair have enjoyed a renaissance—Mr. Saviola has scored 17 goals and Mr. Aimar is back to his creative best—and, at 28 and 30 respectively, both have a number of good seasons left in them. Together with countryman Angel Di Maria—arguably Benfica's player of the season and, at 22, a likely target for Europe's top clubs this summer—the Argentine trio have been the driving force behind Benfica's resurgence.
With the league all but wrapped up, Benfica can now focus on European competition. On Thursday it takes on Liverpool in the quarterfinals of the Europa League. Benfica's legion of fans are once again dreaming, harking back to the early 1960s and the days of Eusebio and Mario Coluna, when the club twice won the European Cup. "
You can only imagine what the party will be like when the crown does return to the club's Estadio do Luz for the first time since 2005. Benfica is far and away the country's best-supported club, and has more than 200,000 fans worldwide who pay around $34 a year for the privilege of calling themselves "socios" or club members. According to club officials, no team in the world has more paid-up members. And, for a relatively small nation like Portugal, its fan diaspora stretches all over the world. "Casa do Benfica" ("House of Benfica") fan clubs can be found in places as diverse as Johannesburg, South Africa; San Jose, California; Luanda, Angola; and Sydney, Australia.
And yet, Benfica has become something of a by-word for underachievement. In the past 15 years, the club has won just one league title, watching helpless as Porto—its rival from the north of the country—established itself as a force, not just in Portugal, but in Europe as well (witness the UEFA Cup and Champions League cups won under Jose Mourinho).
Last summer, Benfica rolled the dice and spent heavily to redress the imbalance. Some $45 million was spent, with just $7 million recouped in sales. In came, among others, Ramires—at 23 years old already a regular in midfield for Brazil—and Javi Garcia, a promising defensive midfielder from Real Madrid. One of the more interesting signings however was Argentine striker Javier Saviola, who rejoined playmaker Pablo Aimar a decade after the pair set South American soccer alight.
Back in the fall of 1999, Mr. Aimar and Mr. Saviola, 19 and 17 respectively at the time, formed a devastating partnership for Argentina's River Plate, whom they led to the Apertura and Clausura championships. Their precocious success led to call-ups to the national team and big-money moves to top European sides. Mr. Aimar joined Valencia in January 2001 for a club-record $32 million and, six months later, Mr. Saviola transferred to Barcelona for $20 million.
Both hit the ground running. Mr. Aimar led Valencia to two Spanish titles and a UEFA Cup, while Mr. Saviola scored sixty goals in his first three seasons at Barcelona. But then something unusual happened. Their performances dropped off severely. Mr. Aimar remained at Valencia until 2006, though by the end he was a shadow of former self. This was followed by two lackluster seasons at Zaragoza, the second blighted by relegation. Mr. Saviola was loaned out to Monaco and Seville, both times failing to make his mark. After another year as a bit player at Barcelona, arch-rival Real Madrid picked him up as a free agent, but, again he was a marginal figure, making just six league starts in two seasons.
But in the summer of 2008, Benfica took a gamble on Mr. Aimar and, after an injury-slowed first half of the campaign, he excelled towards the end of 2008-09 season. So much so that the club decided to repeat the exercise with Mr. Saviola, whom Real Madrid was looking to off-load.
The pair have enjoyed a renaissance—Mr. Saviola has scored 17 goals and Mr. Aimar is back to his creative best—and, at 28 and 30 respectively, both have a number of good seasons left in them. Together with countryman Angel Di Maria—arguably Benfica's player of the season and, at 22, a likely target for Europe's top clubs this summer—the Argentine trio have been the driving force behind Benfica's resurgence.
With the league all but wrapped up, Benfica can now focus on European competition. On Thursday it takes on Liverpool in the quarterfinals of the Europa League. Benfica's legion of fans are once again dreaming, harking back to the early 1960s and the days of Eusebio and Mario Coluna, when the club twice won the European Cup. "
SOU DOENTE SIM.
quinta-feira, 25 de março de 2010
Uma questão de sorte...
"O Benfica venceu o Porto por 3-0. Teve sorte.Aliás, se há coisa que o Benfica tem tido este ano é sorte. Eliminou o Marselha por sorte, goleou o Everton em duas mãos (7-0) por sorte, e imagine-se, teve a sorte do seu lado nos quatro golos marcados em Alvalade. Talvez a sorte de vender João Pereira.Teve sorte nas contratações de Javi Garcia e Ramires.Teve sorte com Saviola e com Airton.Di Maria cresceu. Por sorte claro.E Coentrao faz Queiroz parecer ridículo.O Benfica tem também a sorte de ter dois Maxis. Um joga a primeira a parte, o outro joga na segunda.É impossível que o mesmo jogador possa correr aquilo tudo. Muito se tem falado de túneis. E este campeonato é sem duvida o campeonato dos túneis. Perguntem a Tonel, Yobo, Rolando ou Diawara. O Benfica tem tido mesmo muita sorte.Enche estádios de Norte a Sul do País Sorte, marca muitos golos e tem a sorte, imagine-se, de sofrer muito poucos.Sorte essa que fez de David Luiz muito provavelmente o melhor defesa central da Europa. Sorte também com Luisao, e com o tamanho dos seus bolsos.Cabem lá metade dos avançados da Europa. E para quem por atrevimento quiser ficar de fora, as luvas de Quim têm quilómetros. Os mesmos quilómetros que os Super dragões ontem fizeram para terem três novos motivos para odiar o Benfica. Um motivo aos 9 minutos, um aos 45 e outro aos 92.Tivemos também muita sorte com Jesus. Desde os primórdios da humanidade se percebeu que com o divino do nosso lado fica mais fácil.Tivemos sorte com os adversários também. Everton, Marselha, Porto, Sporting, Guimarães, Hertha, Nacional, Marítimo, Paços de Ferreira.... Muita sorte.O Benfica teve sorte com Carlos Martins, com Ruben Amorim, que já marca golos e com Nuno Gomes que é um líder, e que ama o Benfica como um adepto.E talvez seja essa a maior sorte. Os adeptos. O Benfica só por sorte pode ter adeptos como os que ontem vi no Algarve. Alegres e aos milhares.Noventa minutos a gritarem. O Benfica goleou por sorte, lidera o campeonato por sorte, e só por sorte está nos quartos de final da Liga Europa.Tem a sorte de ter o melhor marcador do campeonato, o jogador mais assistências, o melhor ataque e a melhor defesa.Hoje está um dia bonito. E eu sinto-me com sorte."
Sorte a minha de ter nascido lampião.
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