M'Vila injured in France win World Soccer Shop

A potentially serious injury to key midfielder Yann M'Vila took the shine off an otherwise encouraging 2-0 victory for France over Serbia.

M'Villa: Hobbles out of France's clash with Serbia

Rennes midfielder M'Vila took a kick to the ankle from Dusan Tadic in the opening exchanges and although he tried to carry on he left the pitch in obvious distress with just four minutes on the clock.

His team-mates went on to win with ease, scoring early goals through Franck Ribery and Florent Malouda while creating several other chances, but it will be the diagnosis for his central lynchpin that will most concern Laurent Blanc with less than two weeks until the start of their Euro 2012 campaign.

Germany continue to search for their form nine days ahead of their Euro 2012 bow against Portugal after stumbling to a 2-0 friendly win over Israel in Leipzig.

Against the nation ranked 58 in the world by FIFA, Mario Gomez gave Joachim Low's side the lead just before the break.

A late goal from Andre Schurrle earned Germany a slightly more respectable margin of victory but, after losing 5-3 to Switzerland last weekend, Low still has a lot of fine-tuning to do before things get serious on June 9.

Kiriakos Papadopoulos scored the only goal in the 24th minute as Greece completed preparations for the European Championship finals by claiming their first win in five games against Armenia.

Fernando Santos' side faced going to the finals in disarray after failing to win in any of their four previous friendlies, including a disappointing 1-1 draw against Slovenia in Kufstein last Saturday.

The early strike from Papadopoulos will have restored confidence in the Greek side, who begin their finals campaign against hosts Poland in the opening match next Friday.

Source : http://soccer365.com//news/european_news/general/17558/m_vila_injured_in_france_win

Giroud looks to push claims World Soccer Shop

Olivier Giroud is optimistic his breakthrough season will continue apace as France face Serbia in their Euro 2012 warm-up match on Thursday.

Giroud: Brings 'something different'

Giroud shone at domestic level last season with his league-high 21 goals guiding Montpellier to their maiden Ligue 1 title, and the international scene has already had a taste of the 25-year-old's talents thanks to impressive performances in his first four outings for Les Bleus.

His first international goal arrived in a memorable 2-1 win over Germany in February, while in his latest international outing, against Iceland at the weekend, he came off the bench to set up two goals as Laurent Blanc's men battled back for a 3-2 victory.

Giroud should have done enough to earn a start against Serbia and he is confident he can offer the national side "something different" as Blanc seeks to finalise his plans ahead of France's Group D opener against England on June 11.

"I have increased my level of trust and showed my team-mates what my game is about," said Giroud, who made his debut in a friendly against the United States in November.

"My role is to provide something different. For me it is something new and special. I am very proud to wear the blue jersey, but I'm even more in official competition. That's a lot of pressure, but it's good pressure."

Asked whether Blanc would look to pair him up front alongside Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema, Giroud said: "It is conceivable, but the Euros are imminent. A change of tactics, trying new things, it is not a given, but if I continue like this, I will have my chance.

"I am ambitious, but it's not me who selects the team."

After spending his earlier career at clubs such as Grenoble, Istres and Tours, Giroud came to greater prominence with 12 Ligue 1 goals for Montpellier as they finished 14th at the end of the 2010-11 season.

But it was his exploits during Montpellier's unexpected title challenge that cemented his reputation and forced Blanc to take a closer look.

"It happened pretty quickly," Giroud said of his elevation to the national team. "It proves that with self-sacrifice, labour and a hint of talent, it can be done."

Giroud was named among Blanc's final 23-man squad for Poland and Ukraine when the coach finalised his selection, with Lyon midfielder Yoann Gourcuff and Giroud's Montpellier team-mate Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa the men to miss out.

Those who survived the cut but did not start against Iceland on Sunday are pushing to stake their claim, with Laurent Koscielny and Gael Clichy poised to come in for Philippe Mexes and Patrice Evra in defence.

First-choice goalkeeper Hugo Lloris should return as France seek to extend their unbeaten run to 20 games under Blanc, while Yann M'Vila, Mathieu Valbuena and Florent Malouda are also likely to start.

Serbia, who have not qualified for Euro 2012, head into the match under a cloud after Fiorentina midfielder Adem Ljajic was dropped by coach Sinisa Mihajlovic not singing the national anthem prior to their 2-0 defeat to Spain on Saturday.

The Serbians also play Sweden next week as part of a three-match summer schedule that they are using as preparation ahead of the start of World Cup qualifying later this year.

Source : http://soccer365.com//news/european_news/general/17463/giroud_looks_to_push_claims

International friendly preview: Spain v South Korea

Spain continue their Euro 2012 preparations with a friendly against South Korea at the Tivoli Neu Stadium in Austria on Wednesday.

Since accounting for Serbia 2-0 at the weekend, Vicente del Bosque has named his 23-man squad for next month’s championships.

There are four members missing from the Spanish squad that triumphed over Germany to win the 2008 European championships – Carlos Marchena, Joan Capdevilla and injured pair Carles Puyol and David Silva.

Sevilla striker Alvaro Negredo, who netted 14 goals during the 2011/12 La Liga season, was included, along with Barcelona’s Pedro.

Atletico Madrid striker Adrian Lopez was a surprise omission, despite turning in an impressive substitute display in Saturday’s 2-0 friendly victory against Serbia, with Valencia marksman Roberto Soldado also missing out.

Cesc Fabregas has been told to rest for up to ten days after straining his right thigh muscle in Barcelona’s Copa del Rey success and won’t be risked against South Korea.

Following Wednesday’s match, Spain face China in Seville before opening their Euro 2012 campaign against Italy on June 11.

For South Korea’s first match since defeating Kuwait in 2-0 in a February World Cup qualifier, Arsenal Striker Park Chu-Young has been left out of the 26-man squad that is also due to play two World Cup qualifiers against Qatar on June 8 and Lebanon on June 13.

South Korea boss Choi Kang-Hee has included Koo Ja-Cheol (Wolfsburg), Son Heung-Min (Hamburg) and Ji Dong-Won (Sunderland), who missed February’s 2-0 World Cup qualifier victory over Kuwait.

Fellow European-based players Ki Sung-Yeung (Celtic) and Park Joo-Ho (FC Basel) were also named.

But there was no room for Bolton midfielder Lee Chung-Yong despite making two substitute appearances late in the season after recovering from a broken leg.

The remainder of the squad consists of 14 players based in the K-League, four in the J-League and three in the Qatar Stars League.

In four previous meetings, Spain have prevailed twice but the 31st-ranked Koreans claimed a dramatic victory on penalties to advance to the semi-finals of the 2002 World Cup held in South Korea and Japan.

However, Spain won the nations’ most recent encounter – last June – courtesy of Jesus Navas’ goal four minutes from time.

Source : http://www.soccernews.com/international-friendly-preview-spain-v-south-korea/95438/