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Thursday, December 23, 2010

Giants poised for final battle

Arch rivals Malaysia and Indonesia will face off for the prestigious AFF Suzuki Cup in home and away leg finals on Boxing day and December 29.

According to affsuzukicup.com, Indonesia, long regarded as one of the sleeping giants of Asean football, have chartered their way to the showpiece final after their 2-0 aggregate victory over surprise package the Philippines in the last four.
Malaysia, under the canny tutelage of tactician K. Rajagobal, have progressed to the final of Asean's premier cup competition for the first time since 1996 with an impressive 2-0 aggregate win over defending champions Vietnam.
Whilst Indonesia thrashed Malaysia 5-1 in their group opener, it is fair to surmise that the scoreline did not do any justice to the actual match and such a one-sided score is not anticipated this time around.
Indonesia will be hoping it's a case of fourth time lucky having made it to the final on three previous occasions only to suffer heartbreak in their respective fixtures (4-1 loss to Thailand in 2000, 4-2 loss on penalties against Thailand in 2002 after a 2-2 draw and 5-2 aggregate defeat to Singapore on 2004).
In fact, Indonesia have faced Malaysia in the semi-finals during the 2004 edition and despite crashing to a 2-1 home reverse, they staged a stunning fightback with four second-half goals in the return leg at the Bukit Jalil Stadium to claim a 5-3 aggregate triumph.
Indonesia manager Alfred Riedl will rely on his vital engine cog duo of captain Firman Utina and Muhammad Ridwan to boss the middle of the park and provide the ammunition for deadly hotshot striker Cristian Gonzales, whose two goals against the Philippines has seen him become the tournament top scorer with three strikes.
Malaysia on the other hand, will be relying on the pace and guile of Safee Sali to trouble the Indonesia rearguard while the likes of Norshahrul Idlan and S. Kunanlan will be called upon to provide the service for the attack.
Custodian Khairul Fahmi has been a rock between the sticks after replacing Sharbinee Allawee after the 5-1 debacle to Indonesia and the keeper has only let in a single goal from four games.
The desire and hunger of both teams yet to be crowned as Kings of Asean football promises to be an explosive spectacle in the AFF Suzuki Cup final.
ESPNSTAR.com

Friday, December 10, 2010

Football superstar Ronaldo: That’s my son in Singapore

By Ewen Boey – December 9th, 2010
It’s official: Brazilian superstar footballer Ronaldo has a son living in Singapore.

The ex-Barcelona, Inter Milan and Real Madrid star confirmed via his Twitter account on Wednesday night that he is indeed the biological father of 5-year-old Alexander, who lives with his mother Ms Michele Umezu, 28, in the city-state.
Ms Umezu, who works as a freelance model, had a brief fling with the three-time Fifa World Player of the Year when they met back in Tokyo in 2004. Alexander is believed to be a product of that union.
Ronaldo, who now plays for Brazilian club Corinthians, had said on Monday on his Twitter feed that he had a DNA test to determine whether he was really the father of a five-year-old boy in Singapore.
The 34-year-old striker took the test because Ms Umezu has been trying since 2009 to have him recognised as the father and is demanding child support.
“The test results proved what I showed my feelings when I saw Alex,” Ronaldo tweeted on Wednesday night.
The man once dubbed “The Phenomenon” added, “Alex is my son, the brother of three more beautiful children like him. And I will always be a father to all the pleasures and duties. Welcome.”
The hype began in the middle of this year, when those present at a reception hosted by the Brazilian embassy in Singapore noticed little Alexander, as he bore an uncanny resemblance to the famous football star.
“He’s a carbon copy of Ronaldo,” a guest present that night told The Straits Time on Tuesday.
The child has since been the talk of the 1,300-strong Brazilian community, with Brazilian media and websites running pictures of Ms Umezu, Ronaldo and Alexander.
“We’re all very curious about her, me and my friends. We haven’t seen her but we hope to meet her,” said former sports journalist Flavia du Chenoy Bucey, 24, who moved to Singapore last year and had interviewed Ronaldo’s first wife, Milene Domingues.
It is reported that Ms Umezu first met Ronaldo in Tokyo in 2002 at a party celebrating Brazil’s World Cup triumph. She was then working at a nightclub.
When speaking to the Brazilian media in April, Ms Umezu remained tight-lipped, but said that her son knew who his real father was.
“Sometimes, he wants to see pictures of him. he looks like his father,” she said, referring to Ronaldo, who currently plies his trade with Brazilian club Corinthians.
“When he grows up, he would like to be like his dad,” she added.
This is not the first time Ronaldo has faced trouble in his personal life.
In 2008, the three-time married footballer was involved in a scandal with three transvestite prostitutes whom he met in a nightclub in his home town of Rio de Janeiro.