USA’s 1:0 win over Mexico demonstrated that the spine of the team is on its last legs and not likely to participate in another World Cup. Rampone 36, Boxx 34, Lloyd 29, Wambach 31 are at an age when recovery takes longer, reaction time slows down and effectiveness decreases. There are physiological changes, which take place as we age, and regardless of diet and exercise regiment, older players are unable to compete against younger players on equal footing. Zidane knows that, and so does Scholes.

With USA’s game historically based on athleticism and power, these four players specifically will be tested by younger, more agile, fitter players, and it will not be easy. Rampone is still a defensive leader and organizer, but at this World Cup she will be severely tested. Boxx is no longer the box-to-box midfielder, and she has struggled in the last 12 months with consistency. Lloyd never was and never will be the quick, creative playmaker the US so desperately needs and lacks. Asking her to frequently get into opposing teams’ penalty box can lead to gaps and quick counters. While shooting from distance is her strong characteristic, that alone can’t be criterion for selection. Heather Mitts’ inclusion in the squad can only be attributed to sentimental reasons, as she no longer appears to be first choice even for her club team. It’s been reported that Mitts was told on the field that she was going to Germany. Surely Pia made that decision before Mitts’ very average appearance against Mexico, which included two moments when she was badly exposed. Inexperienced Mexicans did not punish the USA, but Germans will be a lot less forgiving.

Wambach in her prime struck fear in opposing defenders. She had the “box presence,” the ability to get on the end of all balls served into the penalty box, and making defenders hesitant. It is no longer the case today. Nowadays, with her pace a step slower, Wambach increasingly prefers to come towards play to get involved instead of attacking space behind defenses. Her style of play and injuries took their toll on her body. Her ferocious and well-timed runs into the box are no longer ferocious, and as of late they’re not even happening much anymore. And when she gets opportunities as she did against Mexico, she missed a sitter from 6 yards out. Pia’s insistence on playing Wambach may have more to do with lack of options than her form of the last 12 months. Wambach’s contemporary, Birgit Prinz of Germany, is two years older, but German coaching staff has continuously developed her style, and her role with German WNT has changed. More in Wambach’s mold in her younger years, Prinz’s game has evolved and she drops off to become a linkup player, more of a playmaker than a striker. Technically very good, Prinz is capable of making space for teammates as well as making accurate long and short passes and involving her teammates.

Post Germany 2011, USA has O’Hara, Heath, Cheney, Morgan and 3-5 other youngsters with much potential. Their tactical and technical development in the next 2-3 years will be key to their personal and USA’s future. Players such as Rodriguez and Masar could replace Wambach but both require refining of their game. Masar’s development has benefited from WPS in year one and two but not so sure about this season. Rodriguez in WPS off-season needs work on timing and precision of her runs as well as improving her general technique. While Pia plays Rapinoe as a wide player, I believe she may be more suited to playing in the middle as a playmaker. She prefers to seek the ball as opposed to running behind defenders; a more central role should be in her future.

It’s been 12 years since the USA won the World Cup. In that time most countries, from Australia to Russia, have invested in infrastructure and development of the game. The state of women’s facilities in this country is beyond critical. W-League and WPSL, the long-term hope for post college development, have around 90 teams between them. Less than 10% have access to quality soccer facilities for training and matches. Year-round access to conditioning and medical facilities is nonexistent. Comparing access to modern training/conditioning and medical facilities in Germany, Sweden and many European countries to those in the USA will make one weep. Year-round training, competition, access to modern facilities and compensation is what increases professionalism and standard of individual and team play. Today, even WPS can’t deliver that. We are losing a large percentage of good, post-college players who are willing to continue their playing careers outside of WPS. Recognizing that in the USA players are limited to 3-month playing seasons and no access to quality facilities, they lose interest and move on. The Federation and Soccer United Marketing must demonstrate leadership and become proactive. In partnership with Nike, state and local governments, state adult associations and adult clubs, they must invest in small facilities, which can be utilized by adult teams in each state. (Another option is to have MLS teams field professional women’s teams and allow those teams the use of their facilities.) If ever there was a country that needs a long-term strategy when it comes to women’s football, it is the USA. The last decade, the USSF has been in stagnation, refusing to modernize and to invest long term, living on its 1999 success. With the reality that in the last 12 years we’ve witnessed a huge women’s football opportunity destroyed for some years, if not for good, the perpetrators who mismanaged our women’s programs have pretty much run out of excuses. These people, if they ran banks, mutual funds, if they were doctors, they would be accused of malfeasance, of malpractice, and of mismanagement.

We can continue to pretend that everything is well with the women’s game in this country, but without serious long term strategy and investment, we are facing a long, downward trend in performances and results on international stage.

The Italian international Conti was on target in the 6:0 drubbing of her former club Levante UD by cheekily scoring a spectacular chip over the visitors’ Brazilian keeper Thais. Madrid native Mery also scored in the game that proved to be the worst defeat for Levante in years and more than compensated for Espanyol’s unfortunate 2:0 loss to the same opponent in Valencia earlier this season.

The Barcelona outfit continued their good form in Tarragona last weekend where the local Gimnastic was annihilated with a score of 8:1. Conti opened the scoring and Mery turned the real star of the show by scoring 4 second half goals which takes her tally for the season to 8 in 10 appearances.

Finally, Espanyol took a potentially tricky trip to the Balearic Island of Mallorca yesterday, where the local side UD Collerense hadn’t lost a game yet. However, the visitors proved too strong for the Superliga newcomers and went away with a convincing 4:1 victory. Mery was on the field for 90 minutes, and Conti again got herself on the scoresheet by netting the winning second and the fourth goals of the game. This success marks the 14th goal the Palermo native scored in 11 matches this season, which makes her the highest goalscorer of the team and currently 3rd best in the Superliga.

Already qualified for the final round of eight teams who will fight for the League championship beginning in January, RCD Espanyol will finish the first part of the season with a perennial city derby away to the second placed Barça at the Mini Estadi Camp Nou on December 20.

Pam Conti

Mery

]]> http://lta-agency.com/2009/12/conti-mery-fire-espanyol-to-the-top/feed/ 0 http://lta-agency.com/2009/11/picarelli-and-conti-feature-in-italy-win/ http://lta-agency.com/2009/11/picarelli-and-conti-feature-in-italy-win/#comments Thu, 26 Nov 2009 19:34:49 +0000 Anton http://lta-agency.com/?p=849 LTA’s Anna Maria Picarelli earned her 4th consecutive shut-out and Pamela Conti scored her 3rd goal in two matches as Italy Women’s National Team blew away Armenia with a score of 7:0 to stay top of its group in the FIFA Women’s World Cup Qualifiers Germany 2011.

With this win Italy collects its fourth win in four games to share the same points total with Finland but are ahead on goal difference to lead the UEFA Qualifying Group 7 before the winter break. Le Azurre, who are led by long-time Italian Men’s National Team assistant Pietro Ghedin, have scored a staggering 25 goals and haven’t conceded any in the group matches so far.

The match played at the Stadio di Francavilla al Mare proved quite easy for the hosts as Elisabetta Tona put Italy ahead already in the first minute with a well-taken header. LTA’s striker Pam Conti who plays her club football in Spain for RCD Espanyol Barcelona doubled the scoring just before half-time as she dribbled around Armenia’s keeper and put the ball into the empty net to secure the win.

LTA’s American-born goalkeeper, Anna Maria Picarelli didn’t have to face a single shot to preserve a shut-out, which marks the fourth straight match she keeps her opponents from scoring. The last person to score on Picarelli in official competition was Euro 2009 Best Goal Scorer and 2009 FIFA World Player of the Year Candidate Germany’s Inka Grings in the European Championship quarterfinal in Finland last September.

Italy resume their World Cup qualifying campaign with an away match to Portugal on March 27 of next year.

Full Italian Football Federation (FIGC) news release can be found here (in Italian):

Italy Destroy Armenia

Another shut-out for Picarelli

Conti scores again!

LTA are delighted to represent such a talented international as Kirsty Yallop. The busy central or outside midfielder has recently earned her 30th cap for the Football Ferns in a narrow 2:1 defeat to Japan. She also has 9 goals for the senior team and has captained the New Zealand at the 2006 FIFA Uder 20 World Cup in Russia.

Known for her ferocious long-range shots, good control, and tireless work ethic, Yallop helped American Pali Blues win the 2009 USL W-League Championship earning an all important assist on the winning goal in the final vs Washington Freedom.

Yallop started every game for New Zealand at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing and scored a goal in the draw against Japan. She has also scored long range goals against European powers France and the Netherlands at this year’s Cyprus Women’s Cup where the Football Ferns reached semifinals.

LTA Agency capped a productive weekend in Germany by attending a German Women’s Cup round of 16 match between hosts 1. FFC Frankfurt and SC Freiburg at the Stadion am Brentanobad on Saturday.

Frankfurt’s Spanish international striker LTA’s Laura Del Rio finished the scoring in what was a lopsided 6:0 win for the hosts. The goal was Laura’s 8th in 10 appearances this season in all competitions. She leads the team in scoring together with three-time World Player of the Year Birgit Prinz.

During the weekend, Hansen and Maksimov held a meeting with 1.FFC Frankfurt’s manager and SIDI-Sportmanagement chairman Siegfried Dietrich and discussed current situation for Del Rio in Frankfurt, as well as future cooperation between LTA and SIDI-Sportmanagement. 1.FFC Frankfurt is very satisfied with the incorporation of Del Rio and her production for the team, and the overall results of the meeting were very positive.

LTA representatives also met with Germany FIFA World Cup 2003 Golden Goal scorer Nia Künzer (pictured) who is represented by SIDI-Sportmanagement and 1.FFC Frankfurt Vice President Bodo Adler.

The next meeting between LTA and SIDI-Sportmanagement will be scheduled for February-March of next year. 

Hansen, Del Rio, Dietrich, and Maksimov

Künzer and Maksimov

]]> http://lta-agency.com/2009/11/lta-agency-visit-frankfurt/feed/ 0 http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/borkowski-hired-to-challenge-in-europe/ http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/borkowski-hired-to-challenge-in-europe/#comments Fri, 30 Oct 2009 21:33:23 +0000 Anton http://lta-agency.com/?p=666 LTA’s Shek Borkowski and Kaloyan Petkov were officially presented as the new coaches of the Russian champions WFC Zvezda-2005. Below are some highlights of the press conference held at the Zvezda Stadium in Perm Tuesday.

Gennadiy Shilov, president WFC Zvezda-2005:
- We are 3-time defending Champions of Russia, 2007 Russian Cup Winners, 2008/09 UEFA Women’s Cup Finalists. The main task facing the club is to win the UEFA Champions League. To tackle this task, we have just hired a new head coach from the US. He led his previous team FC Indiana to two US League Championships and two US Cup titles.
- The contract was signed on October 26 for 2 years.
- Shek was here at the most recent games, saw the players in action, and by now knows a lot about the team. Of course, it will not be possible to rebuild the team in a short period of 10 days that are left before the match vs Røa.
- In terms of possible transfers, we want to sign primarily Russian players; we will also look to bring in 4-5 foreign players to help fulfill our goals.

Stanislav Kharitonov, sporting director WFC Zvezda-2005:
- I am very pleased with this appointment and believe that with Shek Borkowski we can solve the task, which our president set for us.

Shek Borkowski, head coach WFC Zvezda-2005:
- I am glad to find the team in good form both technically and physically. Players have impressed me so far both individually and as a team, and I like the way the team approaches important games.
- In both men’s and women’s football, there are high expectations for any new coach, not to mention a foreign coach. However, I have worked in a number of clubs in my career, and I am ready to face the increased attention from fans and the media.
- It is a good opportunity for me as a coach to try to take the team to a new level, especially knowing the ambitions of Zvezda-2005. It is a great honor to challenge the top European teams.
- As to the squad, we will check prospective players not only from Europe, but also from the other parts of the world.
- Football is my main occupation. The rest of the time I dedicate to my family. I have four daughters. My family are not going to move to Perm, but I will try to visit them as often as possible.

Kaloyan Petkov, strength and conditioning coach WFC Zvezda-2005:
- During the time that we have left in the season, we can’t do much about the players’ fitness. We just have to try to maintain their current form. By the next pre-season, we’ll create a special conditioning program.

See the club’s news release and complete summary of the press-conference in Russian here:

http://bit.ly/3SOEaJ

See the video report of the press-conference and first training conducted by Borkowski and Petkov in Perm here:

Shek Borkowski

Kaloyan Petkov

]]> http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/borkowski-hired-to-challenge-in-europe/feed/ 1 http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/borkowski-petkov-to-coach-russian-champions/ http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/borkowski-petkov-to-coach-russian-champions/#comments Sun, 25 Oct 2009 07:45:44 +0000 Anton http://lta-agency.com/?p=623 Three-time defending Russian Premier League champions and last season’s UEFA Women’s Cup finalists Zvezda-2005 are set to unveil LTA’s Leszek (Shek) Borkowski as their new head coach next week.

The Russian club, which is preparing to take on Norway’s champions Røa IL in the UEFA Women’s Champions League round of 16 next month are making a statement of intent by signing the two-time league and cup winning coach. The Polish-born coach led his previous club, US powerhouse FC Indiana, to Women’s Premier Soccer League titles in 2005 and 2007 and US Open Cup titles in 2005 and 2008.

With Borkowski now installed as Aleksandr Grigoryan’s replacement at Zvezda-2005, the club located in the most easterly European city of Perm, questions are being raised over the future of the squad, with some significant signings expected to be made in the off-season after the Pole vowed to “take the club forward.”

Borkowski’s appointment shows the serious commitment from the club’s president Gennadiy Shilov, reinforcing the belief that the club’s emphasis next season will be placed on success in Europe. As such, Borkowski is believed to be looking to bring key changes to a squad based on Russian and Ukrainian internationals who, while claiming the last three Russian League titles, have fallen just short of getting the coveted European crown.

Zvezda-2005 sporting director, Stanislav Kharitonov said: “We are delighted that we were able to replace a great coach Grigoriyan with another great coach – Borkowski. We hope that our team will continue to improve and will move only forward as we target winning every tournament that we participate in.”

With regards to player changes, Borkowski who has worked with players from 21 countries during his term in the US, has been linked with several internationals including Mexican midfielder Fatima Leyva. Leyva, who flourished under Borkowski in America and was FC Indiana’s and her National Team captain, is a likely import.

LTA Agency Director of Women’s Football, Anton Maksimov, who was involved in Zvezda’s approach for Borkowski, said: “I always thought that Europe was ideal for Borkowski. After winning titles in America, it is a natural transition for him to coach in a European setting, and the Russian club’s international ambitions match his desire for success perfectly. Fully committed to the women’s game, he is one of the most hard-working, driven, and tactically astute coaches around.”

To be officially presented to journalists in Perm next Tuesday October 27th, Borkowski will be joined in Russia by his long-time assistant LTA’s Bulgarian strength and conditioning coach Kaloyan Petkov.

The press-conference will take place at Zvezda Stadium at 5pm local time. See the club’s news release here:

http://bit.ly/2VuGC3

]]> http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/borkowski-petkov-to-coach-russian-champions/feed/ 0 http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/lta-to-represent-italian-international-conti/ http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/lta-to-represent-italian-international-conti/#comments Fri, 16 Oct 2009 09:07:19 +0000 Thomas http://lta-agency.com/?p=436 RCD Espanyol and Italy Women’s National Team forward Pamela Conti has become a new client of LTA Agency.

An experienced international, Conti has been capped 53 times by Italy. She won 2 Serie A titles and 4 Coppa Italia crowns with the Italian powerhouse ASD Torres Sassari before joining Spanish Champions Levante UD last year. After promptly becoming the team’s top goalscorer, Conti was snatched by the high-flying Espanyol de Barcelona where she continued in the same manner by scoring 9 goals in the first 5 matches of the 2009-2010 Spanish Superliga season.

Known for her impeccable technique and composure in front of the goal, Conti has scored in every other match throughout her career. She played every game for Italy at the UEFA Euro 2005 in England and was in the team during the UEFA Euro 2009 in Finland.

She started the first two matches in Italy’s recently commenced qualifying campaign for the FIFA World Cup Germany 2011 versus Slovenia (in which she scored a hat-trick in the first 45 minutes) and Portugal. She also had a brief stint with Buffalo Flash of the USL W-League in the summer of 2009. She helped Buffalo get into the play-offs in their first year in the League.

Pamela Conti comes from a well-known football family. Her father played for U.S. Città di Palermo in Italian Serie A, and her younger brother Daniele is playing for Palermo now.

Los Angeles area native and graduate of Pepperdine University, Picarelli has made a name for herself with the Italian champions Bardolino Verona with whom she won 2 Serie A titles, 2 Italian Super Cups and 1 Coppa Italia in the last three years. She also reached the quarterfinals and the semifinals of the UEFA Champions League with her team where she excelled against such great clubs as Arsenal of England and Umea of Sweden.

A very quick and active keeper with great reaction, Picarelli made her full international debut in a friendly versus France last year. The call-ups to the Peace Queen Cup and Algarve Cup International Tournaments ensued, and by the time the Euro 2009 in Finland came around, Picarelli was the undisputed number 1 for Italy.

By making a number of spectacular saves and having an outstanding tournament, Picarelli helped Italy defeat heavy favorites England, shut out Russia, and take the World and European Champions Germany all the way in the quarterfinals. Picarelli’s next objectives are to get drafted to the new Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) league in the US and help Italy qualify for the FIFA World Cup Germany 2011.

]]> http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/american-born-italy-wnt-keeper-picarelli-joins-lta/feed/ 0 http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/del-rio-scores-against-fc-bayern/ http://lta-agency.com/2009/10/del-rio-scores-against-fc-bayern/#comments Wed, 14 Oct 2009 12:48:34 +0000 LTA-Admin http://lta-agency.com/?p=489 LTA’s Laura Del Rio scored her third goal in three consecutive games for 1. FFC Frankfurt vs FC Bayern München in a top clash of the Frauen Bundesliga last Sunday.

Five minutes after replacing Sandra Smisek in the 55th minute, Laura one-timed a lay-off from Kerstin Garefrekes into the bottom right corner of Kathrin Längert’s net from the edge of the penalty area. She also assisted Birgit Prinz by threading a great left-footed through ball which Prinz finished with aplomb. Unfortunately, the efforts were not enough as Frankfurt’s defensive errors cost them the game, and FC Bayern went away 3:2 winners.

According to many pundits, Laura was the most effective player on the field for the hosts as she also had a couple of dangerous crosses and hit a left-footed floating shot in the dying seconds of the match that Bayern’s goalkeeper managed to tip just wide of the post. Visitors’ veteran Bianca Rech was sent off after she received her second yellow card of the game for the late tackle on Laura in the 84th minute.

Leading the team in scoring after the first four League games of the season, Laura Del Rio will make her debut in DFB-Pokal (German Cup) tomorrow October 15 vs the fellow Bundesliga side SC 07 Bad Neuenahr in Koblenz. Frankfurt’s next League game is also away to Hamburger SV next Sunday October 18.

You can see the English-language highlights of the 1. FFC Frankfurt vs FC Bayern München match including Laura’s goal and assist here:

http://tv.dfb.de/index.php?view=1462

Full 1. FFC Frankfurt news release can be found here:

http://www.ffc-frankfurt.de/c/cmsfront_content.php?client=1&lang=1&idcat=231&idart=1099

(Photo by E. Krieger)

(Photo by E. Krieger)

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