Liverpool were never seriously linked with Andrey Arshavin before he made his move from Zenit Saint Petersburg to Arsenal last January. But he is exactly the kind of player the Reds needed. He demonstrated this fact again on Sunday with an explosive second-half effort to seal a 2-1 win for Arsenal at Anfield. Read more... Arshavin Shows Liverpool What They're Missing originally appeared on About.com World Soccer on Tuesday, December 15th, 2009 at 05:42:04.

The U.A.E. Premier League is in only it's second season. As such it is a remarkable achievement that they have managed to host the FIFA Club World Cup at a time when the hosts are guaranteed a place for a team from their country. This is a major coup, which unfortunately this year they have failed to capitalise on. FIFA requested that all leagues be professional and this gave all countries a chance to remarket their competitions. It is also possibly the reason that Michael Rodosthenous is here, he is the first non Emirati in such a role, and his expertise could move the game forward in this country, however he has a host of issues to deal with in order to achieve this, noticeably the mindset which is to be the best. Look at the Burj Dubai, the world's tallest building (on 4th January next year when it opens) the Emiratis did not release details of its actual height so no one could beat it and then have added a spire to claim the title. They were determined that this would be the tallest. Clearly the U.A.E . cannot be the best in terms of football and they must learn to accept this, and realise that they can play a part, and they shouldn't give up because they are not number one. I mentioned Abu Dhabi was easy to navigate as it is set up on a grid system. Well the one thing they forgot was to align the grid system with Mecca, and so all the mosques are at a slight angle. Michael is in a similar position he hopes to transform the game in the U.A.E. but is working with hands tied and doesn't quite fit as Emirati society is a closed one. However his appointment with Al Nasr has also given him a role as the middleman in contact with the western world for the U.A.E. football authorities. Don't be surprised if we see former stars playing out their remaining days in the U.A.E. League in future years. I spotted an interesting piece of fair play in their rules when teams from different leagues meet. "The FA has permitted the Premier clubs to register three foreign players with only two for the First Division clubs and thus in a match that pairs together a club from the Premier division against First division clubs in the President's Cup competition, the Premier clubs will field only two of their three foreign players". In Spain it is not unusual for ex-pats to have close affiliation to their adopted clubs. Here it seems like they do not want outsiders involved. There is no advertising of fixtures in the press or even around the stadiums, and I couldn't find any information about local games in any of the English speaking newspapers. Of course part of the problem is that only 20% of the population are from the Emirates. Trying to find out about a game on Sunday saw me head to Bani Yas to meet Saeed, that evening they would be hosting Al Ain. Or so we thought. It had been raining now for two days and the streets of Abu Dhabi had turned into rivers. Arriving at the stadium I would not have been surprised to hear that the game had been postponed. It hadn't been postponed just moved to Al Ain. The information I had clearly stated that Bani Yas were at home and Saeed from Bani Yas wasn't aware of this change. (Bani Yas are in the process of building a new stadium and have stopped playing games at the old one). So we went back to Khalidya, in Abu Dhabi and watched the game on TV in a sheesha bar with Liverpool v Arsenal on at the same time. I understand that Abu Dhabi is made up of over 200 islands, during half time Saeed went to find a cashpoint, he gave up as we were marooned. Not put off the next day I headed north to Ajman, where I was confident they would be hosting Al Shabab that evening. First thing I did arriving in town was head to the stadium to confirm the kick off time. I managed to do this with the groundsman and I checked the conditions would be playable. The rain had now stopped and the sun had reappeared for the first time in days. The game finished 5-3 to the hosts but the standard was very poor. It left me thinking that if this is the standard there is no point in star names coming here in a bid to promote the U.F.L. (the U.A.E. Football League) unless they are just here for the money. The process must start with the homegrown players. It is easy the coach to say that the foreigners did not play well, but they need to start to produce their own players and in order to do this they need to listen to the expertise that they are capable of buying in to. © Ross Clegg & Soccerphile.com Tags Soccer News World Club Cup

The 2009 K-League season was a special one for a certain southwestern region as Jeolla Province welcomed the golden championship trophy for the first time ever. No longer can Jeonbuk Motors claim to be the only team on the continent to have won the Asian title without ever winning the domestic prize. The car metaphor can be driven too far but the Motors were well-oiled from March to December. The team from Jeonju accelerated into top gear quickly, maintained top speed for most of the journey and despite a couple of bumps in the road and slippery patches, the engine was in just as good a condition at the end of the journey as it was at the beginning. A late goal from Lim Sang-hyub gave Jeonbuk a draw at Gyeongnam on the first day of the season back in March and from then, the team never looked back. Six wins came from the next seven games with the only ‘failure’ a 1-1 tie at the home of Asian champions Pohang Steelers. Seven-time champions Seongnam were thrashed 4-1 and Jeju lost 5-0 at home while the favourites for the title, FC Seoul also came off second best. Battling it out with Seoul and Pohang for first spot, Jeonbuk ended in identical fashion, collecting 19 points out of a possible 21 in the run-in. Such form enabled the team in green to finish top of the standings at the end of regular season. That didn’t mean the title however as in Korea, there are still championship play-offs to negotiate. They proved no problem as Jeonbuk defeated Seongnam Ilhwa in the final in early December –recording a 3-1 win that kept 37,000 fans warm in chilly temperatures. There is no doubt as to which player grabbed the headlines. Lee Dong-gook did not have the best of times from 2006 to the start of 2009. ‘The Lion King’ missed the 2006 World Cup through injury, and then moved to England at the start of 2007. Those 18 months in the English Premier League with Middlesbrough didn’t go well and Lee returned to Korea in the second half of 2008. His subsequent short spell with Seongnam did not go well either and he headed to Jeonbuk before the start of the new season. The 30 year-old may have failed in England’s northeast but he has been a big success in Korea’s southwest with 20 goals coming from Lee’s feet or head in 27 games. It is great to be here and scoring goals,” he said just before the season ended. “I am enjoying my football and playing with some very good players.” His words were as accurate as his feet in this case. Lee has the headlines but the supporting cast was impressive. Just like Jeonju’s famous dish of Bi Bim Bap, Jeonbuk’s offence has contained a healthy mix of different ingredients with Lee’s goals providing the kochujang , the hot pepper sauce that gives the dish the kick it needs. A glance of the list of the players who recorded the most assists during the season reveals that Jeonbuk players occupy the top three spots. Choi Tae-wook and Brazilians Luiz Henrique and Eninho have contributed greatly to Jeonbuk’s success as well as the club’s easy-on-the-eye style of play. At the back, Kim Sang-sik, jettisoned by Seongnam at the end of last season, was impressive for his new club while goalkeeper Kwon Soon-tae and fellow defender Choi Chul-soon were the model of consistency despite rarely grabbing the headlines Jeonbuk has never grabbed the league title until now. Things are changing in Korean football and Jeolla Province now has its seat at the top table of soccer powers in the Land of the Morning Calm. Copyright: John Duerden & Soccerphile.com Tags Soccer News football

When the dust had settled on another gripping J. League title race, many wondered whether anyone could stop Kashima Antlers after they picked up their third straight Japanese crown. They got an answer - of sorts - after Gamba Osaka dumped the Antlers out of the season-ending Emperor's Cup at the quarter-final stage. Gamba's belated victory came courtesy of a brace from ex-Oita Trinita striker Masato Yamazaki, who scored either side of a goal from Kashima front man Yuzo Tashiro. The Osakans march on to a semi-final showdown with promoted side Vegalta Sendai, who shook off any ill-affects from their recent J2 title celebrations to beat a star-studded Kawasaki Frontale. In front of a packed house of 18,340 fans at Yurtec Stadium in Sendai, the hosts prevailed thanks to a 2-1 extra-time victory. Yuki Nakashima opened the scoring for the hosts, and Vegalta looked to be cruising to a place in the final four until Kazuhiro Murakami drove home a stoppage-time equaliser. There was to be no monumental fightback from Frontale, however, as Vegalta striker Tomoyuki Hirase scored a late winner to seal Sendai's place in the semi-finals. The other semi-final will be contested by Tokai rivals Shimizu S-Pulse and Nagoya Grampus, although both sides experienced contrasting fortunes in their quarter-final matches. Shimizu required a dramatic extra-time winner from veteran defender Arata Kodama to seal a 3-2 win over a plucky Albirex Niigata, with Kodama's goal coming just a minute from full-time. Meanwhile, Nagoya cruised past cash-strapped local rivals FC Gifu courtesy of a 3-0 win in front of 12,211 fans at Mizuho Stadium, with Australian international Josh Kennedy scoring a hat-trick. The win sets up an intriguing final four clash with regional rivals Shimizu S-Pulse on December 29, with Shimizu set to enjoy the lion's share of support as the two sides run out at Ecopa Stadium. The other semi-final will take place at the National Stadium in Tokyo , as the four remaining Emperor's Cup combatants fight for their place in a New Year's Day showdown. Online Betting Bonus Copyright © Michael Tuckerman & Soccerphile.com J.League News Tags Soccer News football