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dlj direct
Ajax is not as strong today as the team they fielded
back in 1995 with Seedorf, Kanu, Overmars,
Kluivert, Davids, and Rijkaard to name a few of the
stars. Ajax is clearly in a rebuilding mode. But with the
magnificent youth department that Ajax is famous for,
there is a light at the end of the tunnel. New coach Jan Wouters, who
played on the 1988 Dutch team with Gullit, Van Basten, Koeman etc. has
sold the last golden boys from 1995 in goalkeeper Edwin Van der Saar to
Juventus, Meichiot to Chelsea, England, and Jarri Litmanen to Barcelona,
Spain. Wouters has added to the team the exciting Danish striker Brian
Laudrup from Chelsea, England. This is a major addition to a team that is
known for elegant soccer. The Dane who almost took Denmark to a win
over Brazil in the '98 World Cup has had trouble settling down since
France, but seems to have found peace in the Dutch Powerhouse. Wouters
also managed to convince old-Ajax-boy Aron Winter to return to help
rebuild the proud Ajax side. Bringing back Winter is a sign of Wouters
connections and his reputation among Dutch players. As a player he was
a tough, at times even mean, midfielder but off the field he
was the joker and friend that always had time to help out
a fellow player.
Last season was not pretty for Ajax. Having to watch their
arch-rivals, Feyenoord, take the championship away from
them was devastating for Ajax fans. It didn't help that this
had already been decided half-way. through the season.
Highlights of the season: There were not a lot. The Low
points were clearly watching Feyenoord take the trophy
fairly uncontested and the behavior of the De Boer
twins in their departure for Barcelona, Spain at mid-season.
The 1999/2000 Season looks to be different. Wouters, who was
hired in the middle of-last season, has spent his time getting the
team ready for next season. The team coming to New York in
July for the DLJ Direct Gotham Cup tournament should be a
good indicator of what can be expected of the proud Dutch
Club.
(bruin laudrup dressed for the dunes)
All the experts saw Fiorentina as one of the serious
contenders for the 1998/99 season. With the addition
of a World class coach in Giovanni Trapattoni and the
renewal of Batistuta's contract Fiorentina looked extraor
dinary. The shopping that was done in the summer up to
the beginning of the season only added to the excitement.
Rui Costa from Portugal, Jorg Heinrich from Germ ah y,
Oliveira from Belgium, and Spanish star Amor all are internationally
renowned names. Fiorentina was on its way.
It looked like Fiorentina was going to prove the experts right when half
way through the season Trapattoni's boys indeed were leading. Yet, as
the long season extended into spring, it became obvious that Fiorentina
did not have the depth that some ot the other powers had. Injuries and
suspensions caused them to slide. When all was said and done, they slid
to a respectable third place in what is, arguably, the best
league in the world.
Highlights of the season were the 1-0 win in Turin over
Juventus, resulting in a position in next years
Champions League. The Lower point was being
expelled from the UEFA Cup because of fan behavior.
The 1999/2000 Season promises to be even more
successful for the strong Firenze team. Even though
they lost Brazilian Edmundo, they gained midfielder
Angelo Di Livio from Juventus, a pair of strikers from
Parma in Italy's Enrico Chiesa Argentina's Abel Balbo,
and the Serbian forward Predrag Mijatovic from Real
Madrid. All proven international names that should add
the power and depth that Trapattoni desperately needs.
mi casta for fiorentina)
In a time where the Bosman ruling is dominating
the English Premier League and Foreign Imports are
dominating the teams, it is unheard of to have a
team that consists almost entirely of British players.
Nevertheless, John Gregory, the coach of Villa, has
managed to field a team that did this. To compete week in and week
out against the Man Us, the Arsenals, the Liverpools, and Chelseas
says a lot about the little team from Birmingham that plays so big!
World Soccer Magazine in a preview of the 1998/99 season said this
about the team from Villa Park: "More recruitments are urgently
required for a credible campaign in the League and UEFA Cup." Well
a spot in the UEFA cup and a sixth place finish in front of teams like
Liverpool, Tottenham, Newcastle, and Middlsborough, all famous for
heavy international shopping sprees seems to be pretty good. Are
they overachieving? Well, only time will tell, but it seems like
Gregory has something good here. A mix of youngsters like Alan
Thompson, Gareth Barry and Dion Dublin all on the English youth
national team and veterans like Paul Merson, Gareth Southgate, Mark
Draper seems to be working. Gregory has a finger on the pulse. After
all, he masterminded the move to create the immediate
addition of Calvin Klein Model 'keeper David
James from Liverpool after the transfer of flam
boyant "Aussie" 'keeper Marc
Bosnich. Gregory knows his
team and its limitations, he
knows where to move and after
whom. He adapts to the situation in
front of him and his team and that makes Aston
Villa a very dangerous outsider in next year's
League and UEFA Cup. If the other teams are
not careful, these tricky Brits could add the
"Gotham Cup trophy to their collection at the
end of July.
(dion dumin[ri.} in a premier league match)
Whenever the proud fans of this Greek club have
to watch their arclurivals from Olympiakos raise
the trophy, the season has been a failure. This hap-"
pened again this year and as such the fans were
disappointed. It did not help that the club did not
manage to advance in the Champions League. Even
the National Cup (comparable to the US'Open Cup) was
lost. The last time Panathinaikos won a trophy was in 1995 wbere they
were double trouble, winning both National Cup and League
Championship. Looking back they dominated Greek soccer in the begin
ning of the 1990s. So what happened? Like Ajax, the club is going
through a change. Old players are almost done and new players are
coming in. Additions like Mauro Da Silva from Brazil, Greek U-21
National Team star Georgios Karagounis and powerful wingback Aljosa
Asanovic have made Panathinaikos the team to. watch for next
season. Coach Danill seems to have the formula for mixing
young and old talent. The old Polish fox Kryztof Warzycha is
still roaming around up front and sneaking goals with the best
of them. Norwegian veteran Erik Myklana ties the midfield
together brilliantly as he has done for Norway for many
years. Because the expectations are so high from the
media and the fans anything less than a trophy is seen as
a disappointment for the Athens club. Despite the stress
Danill has had a few years to build a strong team and it
seems like the patience that the management of the club
has shown their coach will be rewarded. There is no
doubt Panathinaikos has the talent and the eagerness to
push Olympiakos off their throne. Whether it will be
this year or next year remains to be seen. The poten
tial is there for a big season for Panathinaikos and
their fans all over the world.
(kryztof warzycha celebrates)
