update

Update

Friendly 2011 Mexico Paraguay on MiamiGunners Match Of The Week

international friendly
26th march 2011: mexico v. paraguay

Mexico and Paraguay will use each other to prepare for upcoming summer tournaments, and with this match falling on an international fixture weekend the teams will field full-strength or close to it rosters. El Tricolor have already played a match against Jose Manuel De La Torre but that squad was more experimental than this one.
Five key players have returned to the squad who, for one reason or another, were unable to participate against Bosnia in February. Perhaps the most noticeable is Guillermo Ochoa, who was not included in the roster despite being healthy and available. The bar for goalkeeping has been set high as Jesus Corona performed admirably against Bosnia. As Alfredo Talavera was a favorite of De La Torre's in Toluca, Ochoa seemingly has his work cut out for him. This will also mark the first chance De La Torre will be able to field exciting youngsters Javier Hernandez, Giovani Dos Santos and Carlos Vela together. Vela, along with Efrain Juarez, was suspended for six months and unable to play against Bosnia. Whether the trio lines up together and in what formation remains to be seen.

Mexico have a limited opportunity to prepare for the Gold Cup as this will be the first of three friendlies Mexico have lined up before June 5. Further placing importance on this game is the caliber of opponent as Paraguay are stronger than Tuesday's opponent - Venezuela - as well as their final pre-Gold Cup rival, Ecuador.

Getting a result is not necessarily imperative but playing well and performing well are. The team has had precious few moments to prepare under De La Torre and try and grab a grasp of his tactics and formations. However, the continuity the team has enjoyed from last summer to now will help ease into the transition process as Mexico look to defend their Gold Cup title.

Paraguay are also preparing for this summer as los guaranis are looking for success in Copa America. Paraguay crashed out badly in their last Copa America appearance, losing to Mexico by a whopping 6-0. Since then, though, Paraguay have done well for themselves, having won their World Cup group last summer and reaching the quarterfinals before losing to eventual champions Spain. Paraguay will be without venerable veterans Nelson Haedo Valdez and Roque Santa Cruz as manager Gerardo Martino elected to leave the pair with their respective clubs. The attack, then, will likely go through Dortmund's Lucas Barrios. Still, without Santa Cruz and Valdez, El Tri's backline may not have a tough time bottling up Paraguay's shorthanded attack. The squad will feature several players familiar to Mexican supporters: Edgar Benitez, Osvaldo Martinez and Dario Veron play in Mexico, with Pachuca, Monterrey and Pumas, respectively. Also, Paraguay's roster features former Mexican league talents such as Cristian Riveros, Enrique Vera and Paulo Da Silva.

Campionato 2010 2011 Lazio Cesena on MiamiGunners Match Of The Week

week 30
19th march 2011: lazio v. cesena

 Lazio captain Tommaso Rocchi has warned his team-mates they cannot afford to dwell on their bitter defeat to Roma. The Biancoceleste lost 2-0 at the Stadio Olimpico last weekend to suffer their fifth straight derby defeat. The result was all the more painful as it allowed Udinese to leapfrog Lazio into fourth in the standings and the top four teams at the end of the season qualify for the Champions League.
"We must leave behind all the negatives from that derby," Rocchi said. "It is an important season and now the crucial games begin. "We have obtained positive results this campaign and we cannot throw away all the good work we have done because we lost the derby. "We have to believe in ourselves and focus on a top four finish. "We owe it to ourselves and to our fans to battle until the end in order to achieve something important."

Lazio trail two points behind Udinese and are two points above sixth-placed Roma heading into Saturday's match at the Stadio Olimpico. "Our only focus right now is on beating Cesena and put pressure on Udinese," Rocchi said. Lazio coach Edy Reja will be forced to make some changes to his starting XI with respect to last weekend's match. Stefan Radu, Stephan Lichtsteiner and Cristian Ledesma are all suspended. Rivals Cesena cannot afford a defeat in Rome if they are to remain above the drop zone. Last weekend's 2-2 draw against Juventus allowed Cesena to hold the last position of safety and they are just one point clear of 18th-place Lecce. Cesena coach Massimo Ficcandeti hopes his team can keep up their recent good run of form on the road this weekend. The promoted outfit have collected four points in their last two games away from home. "We are on the right path," said Ficcandeti. "We must keep up our good work and remain focused."