Macedonians not playing for NT
Until Macedonia makes a Euro or World CUP we will not see players pick Macedonia over the country they may live in. Goran Slavkovski will be told by all his handlers to play for Sweden. And not because he can say that he played in some elite competitions, but because those competitions are the best way to market your ability. Marek Jankulovski would never have played for teams like AC Milan and made the money he has made had he not been a prominent fixture on the world stage for the Czech Republic. I would never doubt Goran Pandev's loyalty to the National Team, yet I wonder hypothetically what would have happened had Goran played for a youth team in Sweden when he was say 14. He would have gotten his Swedish Nationality after five years. And I'm almost positive he would have been hounded to play for Sweden. In a way I can't blame the players. If Goran Pandev was Croatian he probably would have made the Euro 2004 team and showcased himself. Instead he has tried so hard to prove himself at Lazio. I may be biased but I believe he is Lazio's one true gem (because of his age), he is 23 and has been in on as many goals as Rocchi with much less time on the field. Oddo, Lazio's great defender gets all the attention, maybe deservedly so, but Pandev doesn't get a sniff. Ibrahimovic's goal in Holland was talked about for a longtime, yet when Goran dribbled through the worldclass defence of Juventus it didn't get much airtime because no one knows who Pandev is, and more importantly where Macedonia is on the map. Lazio's former defender/midfielder Cesar was linked with a move to Inter for half the year yet he was not playing and when he was playing was in horrible form. I couldn't believe Inter wanted him. Then I started thinking; he was good last year and more importantly is Brazilian. Pedigree means so much. If Macedonia makes Euro 2008 they could showcase themselves not so much individually but as a nation that produces world class players, much like Greece did in Euro 2004. Many unproven young Greek players are now being given a look in elite leagues because managers believe greeks have a certain quality needed to suceed because of the teams showing 2 years ago.
Hopefully Pandev and his mates can make a big final in the near future
Until Macedonia makes a Euro or World CUP we will not see players pick Macedonia over the country they may live in. Goran Slavkovski will be told by all his handlers to play for Sweden. And not because he can say that he played in some elite competitions, but because those competitions are the best way to market your ability. Marek Jankulovski would never have played for teams like AC Milan and made the money he has made had he not been a prominent fixture on the world stage for the Czech Republic. I would never doubt Goran Pandev's loyalty to the National Team, yet I wonder hypothetically what would have happened had Goran played for a youth team in Sweden when he was say 14. He would have gotten his Swedish Nationality after five years. And I'm almost positive he would have been hounded to play for Sweden. In a way I can't blame the players. If Goran Pandev was Croatian he probably would have made the Euro 2004 team and showcased himself. Instead he has tried so hard to prove himself at Lazio. I may be biased but I believe he is Lazio's one true gem (because of his age), he is 23 and has been in on as many goals as Rocchi with much less time on the field. Oddo, Lazio's great defender gets all the attention, maybe deservedly so, but Pandev doesn't get a sniff. Ibrahimovic's goal in Holland was talked about for a longtime, yet when Goran dribbled through the worldclass defence of Juventus it didn't get much airtime because no one knows who Pandev is, and more importantly where Macedonia is on the map. Lazio's former defender/midfielder Cesar was linked with a move to Inter for half the year yet he was not playing and when he was playing was in horrible form. I couldn't believe Inter wanted him. Then I started thinking; he was good last year and more importantly is Brazilian. Pedigree means so much. If Macedonia makes Euro 2008 they could showcase themselves not so much individually but as a nation that produces world class players, much like Greece did in Euro 2004. Many unproven young Greek players are now being given a look in elite leagues because managers believe greeks have a certain quality needed to suceed because of the teams showing 2 years ago.
Hopefully Pandev and his mates can make a big final in the near future