Nikefootball Australia

10 men make the difference

BLOG_AU — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 06:03:09 GMT

Winning was critical for the Socceroos, playing a tough Oman opposition in front of an unforgiving away crowd.

Early blows in the form of a red card and a goal by Oman meant there were two options; give in or step up.

Australia played the only way they know how - tough and determined, and step up they did.

With a man and a goal down the Socceroos pulled together to respond with 75 minutes of herculean effort. No surrender.

In the end it was Luke Wilkshire and Brett Emerton who scored the crucial goals to make the difference.

Ignition point

BLOG_AU — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 01:02:30 GMT

Sometimes the most important goal is not the winner.

Six minutes left, 3-1 behind. All heads down. Except one. Scholes rose high to nod in the cross, instill belief in his team and ignite the comeback.

Minutes later, they were level and through to the knockout stages of Europe’s premier club competition.

SEE THE MAN UTD PAGE

Can you stand it?

BLOG_AU — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 01:09:19 GMT

Pressure. It changes everything.

On Sunday, Fernando was only 80% fit, burdened with expectation and desperate to end a four-game losing streak for his club.

But when your back’s against the wall, there’s only one way to go.

El Niño burst into the box, shrugged off his man and fired into the roof of the net.

Pressure – tastes good.

Defenders: read it and weep

BLOG_AU — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 23:33:24 GMT

Four league hat-tricks in three seasons.

Five goals in his last two league games.

Fernando’s got his eye on the 2009-2010 golden boot.

Be warned.

Torres on fire

BLOG_AU — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 05:24:46 GMT

A record-breaking first season for your new club. Winning your country’s first major honours for 44 years. Taking on the world again and again.

You could be forgiven a slow start to the season. But El Nino never goes cold.

Two stunning goals on the weekend. Five goals in six league games. You’d better believe he’s back.

Better than a Derby

BLOG_AU — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 22:04:30 GMT

Back and forth action featuring the precise passing of Arsenal and the muscled management of Manchester United. Fans got what they asked for in the first meeting of the season for two English powerhouses.

A 20-meter strike from Andrei Arshavin, Arsenal’s newest all star, finds the upper 90, powering through the keeper’s hand to start the scoring. A solid penalty from Wayne Rooney, Manchester’s now unquestioned --p-16892--, brought the match even. It was edge of your seat madness for 90 minutes.

The red devils took the lead with their second goal in a 5-minute span, which sealed the home victory for Rooney and crew, and left Arsenal forced to look forward. The rematch in London, exactly 5 months from now, will again put the players in the pressure cooker, right where the fans want them, with a much better idea of how the league table is shaking out. January 30th can’t come soon enough.

T-90 Ascente Testing - Juventus

BLOG_AU — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 04:54:49 GMT

Date: 09.02.09
Location: Vinovo, Italy
Weather conditions: Sunny, light wind. Perfect training conditions.
Pitch conditions: Wet. A few heavy patches of water and some sandy sections.
Players and staff: Christian Molinaro, Claudio Marchisio, Amauri Carvalho de Oliveira. Some of the team were away on international duty.

Tester’s notes:
Sunny day, soft breeze. Ideal. Long and short-range passing led by Coach Schincaglia. Team session: keep ball lasted for over an hour. More than 100 touches on the ball. Schincaglia pleased with every one of them: “It’s great for tight control and one-two passes.” Shooting session: finishing drills for the strikers. Ball flight is clean. Barbetti Luigi: “I like this. It’s great.” Goals look good with this ball. And so do the players. “Fans will love it. They’ll see great goals.” Molinaro’s right.

T-90 Ascente Testing – Arsenal

BLOG_AU — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 04:32:23 GMT

Date: 04.02.09
Location: London Colney
Weather conditions: Extremely cold. Temperature range from -5C to +5C. Conditions changed from sunny, blue skies to cloudy with snow and rain.
Pitch conditions: Ploughed snow. Ground soggy but firm.
Players and staff: Abou Diaby, Nicklas Bendtner, Jack Wilshere, William Gallas, Denilson, Eduardo, Mikael Sylvestre, Carlos Vela, Alexandre Song, Lukas Fabianski, Manuel Almunia, Arsene Wenger.

Tester’s notes
Freezing conditions. Heaviest snowfall in 18 yrs. Balls inflated to 12.5 psi exactly. Arsene had a juggle & some one-touches w Paul Johnson. “It’s good, it’s lively.” The keepers... Almunia worried. “Not good for goalkeepers. Again!” Sorry Manuel. (Great for fans though.) Team session. Wilshere : “Yeah, it feels good on the touch.” Shooting session: Ball flight and rotation were true. Some spectacular long-range shots. Get ready Premier League – spectacular goals are coming.

T-90 Ascente Testing – Man Utd

BLOG_AU — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 04:10:07 GMT

Date: 05.02.09
Location: Carrington
Weather conditions: Very cold and windy. Conditions ranged between cloudy, snowing and sunny. Temperature range 0-1C without wind chill. Well below freezing with wind chill. 0-20 mph winds throughout.
Pitch conditions: Good, short grass.
Players and staff: Full first team, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs, Darren Fletcher, Wes Brown, Edwin Van der Sar, Ben Foster, Rafael da Silva, Tomasz Kuszczak.

Tester’s notes:

Freezing cold. And more snow. Balls topped off to 12.5psi.

Team session: 15-mins shots on goal from 20 yards. 8 vs. 2 one-touch keep-ball drill. Fast, one-touch session.

Shooting session: Players hammer the ball, Rooney hits hardest – like a sledgehammer: “Feels nice to strike. Especially when you strike it true.” More finishing drills. Shooting from 3 different spots. Players love shooting with it. All-around accuracy improvements.

T-90 Ascente Testing – Barcelona

BLOG_AU — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 03:53:25 GMT

Date: 28.01.09
Location: Ciutat Esportiva
Weather conditions: Clear blue skies, no wind, sunny. Temperature of 15C.
Pitch conditions: Short grass (1.5cm). Good conditions. Pitch was sprayed 10 minutes before training.
Players and staff: The full squad took part, except Gai Yigaal Assulin. Head Coach Luis Enrique led the session.

Tester’s notes:

Warm, clear skies. Perfect conditions. Balls filled to 11psi.

Team session: Running with ball in pairs. Short passes. Headers, chests, volleys. Busquets, coached the keepers: “The touch is perfect.”

Accuracy contest: all players on 16 metre line. Who can land the ball in the centre circle? Puyol took it. Who can hit the cross bar, repeatedly? Iniesta walked away with this one. They say he always does. I like to think the ball helped. Massip: “There’s no wobble, the ball goes straight at its target.”

Shooting session: led by Assistant Coach Joan Barbara Mata: “The ball bends nicely when you shoot.” Next stop Arsenal.

In pursuit of accuracy

DonJulio — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 10:19:54 GMT

Watch the innovation story behind Nike’s most perfectly engineered ball: the T90 Ascente. Hear how the designers have accomplished the ultimate in accuracy. Watch the world’s greatest players put the ball through its paces.

Dutch Master

BLOG_AU — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 01:33:00 GMT

The whistle blows for a free kick just outside the box. You’re handed the ball. So what’s it going to be? Power or placement?

For Wesley Sneijder, the answer is easy. Don’t choose between the two when you can deliver a killer combination of both.

Give Sneijder a set piece and his brain’s already whirring. How far out is it? How hard is the ball? What’s the angle? The wind speed? What boots is he wearing?

Being one of Europe’s dead ball masters isn’t easy. But when free kick magic happens this often, you know it’s not coincidence anymore. It’s next level skill.

The Manchester Three

Lukester2007 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 01:08:29 GMT

Blistering pace. No-look passing. Sledgehammer shooting. Imagine defending for ninety minutes against one of the best strikers on earth.

Now multiply that by three.

Welcome to the world of the defenders tasked with keeping Manchester United’s striking trio of Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez at bay.

And if you thought a strikeforce made up of Portugese, Argentinian and British players would be hampered by communication problems, think again. The threesomes telepathic link up play produced well over seventy goals last season.

As Wayne Rooney explains, their different cultural backgrounds mean nothing on the pitch. When it comes to football, all three players speak exactly the same language.

Creating Converts is Next Level

Lukester2007 — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 09:21:02 GMT

One great season doesn't make you a legend. But 33 goals in his first 47 first team games has made Fernando Torres the hero of the Kop.

And with no home nation to support in Austria and Switzerland this summer, at least one half of Liverpool will be supporting Spain.

Nunca caminaras solo, as they now say on Merseyside.

What Wayne Knows

Lukester2007 — Thu, 22 May 2008 16:19:43 GMT

On May 21, Wayne Rooney will be in Moscow gunning for club football's ultimate prize. If he is to bring the trophy back to Old Trafford, Rooney will need to put into practice everything he's learnt throughout his career. See what the man himself had to say about getting the edge in and around the box.