SOCCER NEWS:JOHAN CRUYFF has fired the opening salvo in the build-up to the Champions League final by accusing English clubs of damaging the game by stockpiling footballers from around the world.
The former Barcelona player and coach, who acts an adviser to the president, Joan Laporta, has held the Catalan club up as an example to follow thanks to their success in bringing through young talent – in contrast to their Premier League opponents. He has also warned that football is ruining the lives of children from around the world and has urged the European Union to intervene.
Barcelona’s starting XI in Rome is likely to include five Catalans, plus Leo Messi and Andres Iniesta, both of whom were brought through the club’s youth system, La Masia. At most, Manchester United will start with three – if Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes join John O’Shea in the side.
Cruyff, whose philosophy permeates Barcelona and who was responsible for employing Frank Rijkaard and Pep Guardiola as coach, says “the best thing” about their success is that other clubs “will copy them.”
He said: “Barcelona have a lot of home-grown players in the team. Big teams are not obliged to win at all costs; they are obliged to compete to win, always thinking of the good of the game.”
The good of the game is not something Cruyff believes Premier League clubs care about and he was scathing of the English model.
“However much English teams reach finals, I’m sorry, I do not buy it because of the players they have on the pitch,” he said. “The vast majority of them have been bought from abroad. There are very, very few Englishmen. Just look at the Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United squads.
“Both the English national team and football in general suffers as a result of them signing so many foreign players. Doing so weakens the competition because it’s impossible for every player they sign to play.
“I would like to see a candidate [at the European parliament elections] pick up on the 6+5 idea and fight to change the law on this. That way, the national teams would be improved. As a consequence, you’d also stop the trafficking of children – thousands of footballing hopefuls that are taken from poor countries and of whom only a tiny proportion make it. Where are the rest of them now, what’s their life like?”
Meanwhile, Chelsea will resist Germany’s optimistic attempts to take Michael Ballack on their tour of China and Dubai this month, a selection which would rule him out of the FA Cup final, despite suggestions from the head coach, Joachim Loew, that the midfielder would be expected to fulfil his commitments to the national team.
Low stated that Ballack, with whom he has endured a fractious relationship in recent times, was due to join up with the national squad ahead of their end-of-season friendlies against China and the United Arab Emirates.
Germany play the first of those in Shanghai on May 29th, the day before Chelsea take on Everton at Wembley, with Loew intent upon selecting Ballack for the fixture.
“Michael is our leader,” said the national coach. “He can integrate young players, bring them together and give them hints. These are valuable things he can tell the other players. However, they must also have the feeling that our captain is always with us in difficult situations.
“We decided this trip [to China and Dubai] last year and it was agreed with both the Bundesliga and the German Football League because the Chinese market is important for economic reasons.”
Yet Chelsea have reacted with incredulity to those suggestions and yesterday reiterated that Ballack, who was ruled out of Sunday’s victory over Blackburn Rovers suffering from flu, will remain with the club until they complete their domestic season against Everton.
Because the German tour falls outside the agreed international calendar, the national federation has no means of forcing the issue.
Ballack is expected to return to the Chelsea first team for Sunday’s trip to Sunderland.
Guardian Service
