Armenian Soccer

[Armanen]

Re: Armenian Soccer

We are playing with our B-team while they have their A-team. There were a few opportunities that someone like Yura Movsisyan would have easily finished. But it's surprising that the coach chose to go with the B team against Serbia, the words 25th ranked team, who are playing with their A team. The coach saved the A-team for the Canada game which doesn't make a lot of sense. It would have made more sense to do the opposite.

I tuned in after the start of the game, about the 6 minute mark. I noticed early on that the Armenian players on the pitch were the new call ups. I figured Serbia may have their A team and of course after they scored I was pretty sure they did.
The only reason I see the coach putting new players out there against a strong team like Serbia is to test them against strong competition, which Canada is not, moreover the teams Armenia will be facing in its WC qualifying group are near Serbia's ranking or better, with the exception of Bulgaria and Malta.

[Armanen]

Re: Armenian Soccer

I saw a someone post this on the offical fb of the Armenian soccer team.

"good game by mostly our reserve B squad... guys keep in mind Wed. is the official FIFA date, this game counts nowhere, rankings or goals."

If true this makes sense then, along with what I said above, why the coach went with the B team.

[Mher]

Re: Armenian Soccer

I tuned in after the start of the game, about the 6 minute mark. I noticed early on that the Armenian players on the pitch were the new call ups. I figured Serbia may have their A team and of course after they scored I was pretty sure they did.
The only reason I see the coach putting new players out there against a strong team like Serbia is to test them against strong competition, which Canada is not, moreover the teams Armenia will be facing in its WC qualifying group are near Serbia's ranking or better, with the exception of Bulgaria and Malta.

Yeah that makes sense. He already knows what he has and doesn't have in his top 10-15 players. He needs to see what he has in the bottom 10-15, and he couldn't make any decisions based on a performance against Canada. It would have been fun though to see how we would stack up against a team like Serbia with out best players.

[Mos]

Re: Armenian Soccer

Armenia-Canada: http://tert.am/am/news/2012/02/29/armenia-canada/

2-1 now

[Armanen]

Re: Armenian Soccer

https://www.facebook.com/ArmenianNT

3-1. It was a good game, Armenia has some room to improve but they outclassed Canada after the first 10 minutes of the game. Ozbilis scored the last goal, congrats to him on that and also on completing the first of what is hopefully many successful appearances for Armenia's NT!

[Mos]

Re: Armenian Soccer

yes, it was a good victory, we defeated China the biggest country in world in chess, now the second biggest country in soccer

[ninetoyadome]

Re: Armenian Soccer

For those who missed the game

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbP7YwITb6I&feature=related

Also if you guys want i can post a link to the whole game to download.

[Mher]

Re: Armenian Soccer

Armenian National Soccer Team: Minnows to Contenders?
By
Michael Karapetian
(Contributor) on February 26, 2012


After a spectacular showing during the qualifying stages of the 2012 European Cup qualifiers, the national team of Armenia quickly emerged from a minnow to a mid-European side. Despite amazing performances from veterans such as keeper Roman Berezovsky and defender Sargis Hovsepyan combined with the influx of youngsters and newcomers like expert goal scorer Yura Movsisyan and the blistering speed of Artur Sarkisov, the persistent side was trumped in Dublin, by the more experienced Irish side.

As a result of the Cinderella-esque run, hope and excitement for the Armenian people in Armenia and the diaspora are looking ahead to the qualifications for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Along the way, however, the Armenians will play challenging friendlies to prepare themselves for a rigorous group which includes the ever prominent Italian team along with the Danes, who topped their Euro 2012 qualification. Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Malta are the other three teams that round up the group.

Recent news has been nothing but positive for the Highlanders, as they are called. The latest FIFA Rankings have the Armenians at number 40, the highest ever in the nation's short history, and also 25th in Europe. The debut of Aras Ozibiliz, born in Turkey and playing for AJAX in Holland, is also highly anticipated along with the commitment from Norair Mamedov, who turned down the invite to play for the next two friendlies due to his club schedule and feeling that he needs to improve his skills before joining the senior side.

The upcoming schedule for the squad includes games on back-to-back days against the physical Serbian team on the Feb. 28, followed by the Canadian side on the Feb. 29. Both games will take place in Larnaka, Cyorus. In August, the Armenians will host the Belarusian side with rumors of a game against the Greeks in Austria during the month of may.



A lot of questions need to be answered during those friendly matches before the qualifying cycle begins. For one, with the additions of Ozibiliz and Mamedov, to go with already established players such as Movsisyan, Henrik Mkhitaryan, Marcos Pizzelli, Edgar Manucharyan, Artur Sarkisov and Gevorg Ghazaryan the front half of the pitch is already established with talent. Only question for Coach Vardan Minasyan is to figure out how to keep the players happy and focus on what tandems have the best chemistry.

The biggest question, however, will remain on the defensive side of the pitch with Hovsepyan, who leads the nation with 125 caps at the age of 39, and Berezovsky, 37, are nearing the end of their careers, yet remain the leaders of the defense. Hovsepyan, alone, has more caps than all of the defenders on the roster (54) for the next two friendlies combined. Experience behind Berezovsky is also greatly lacking. That was greatly proven during in Dublin after the controversial red card given to the veteran keeper. A crucial own goal followed by another mistake made by, 20-year-old backup keeper, Arsen Petrosyan was the Achilles heel for the side.

If Coach Minasyan can get the team to continue to buy into his system and get the defensive side of the pitch on the same page, there is no telling how well the Armenians might do during qualifiers, despite being in such a talented group.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1081681-armenian-national-soccer-team-minnows-to-contenders

[Haykakan]

Re: Armenian Soccer

Just think about the fact that all the offencive talented players we have are still young and that means we have a scary team shaping up offencively. A good defender and goaly will make this team a complete football team with a chance to win any game. I still dont like gangsters like rubo but i am proud that armenia has been able to field such a talented team in such a short time despite all the hardships it has faced. HAYER HOOP TUR!

[Joseph]

Re: Armenian Soccer

Just think about the fact that all the offencive talented players we have are still young and that means we have a scary team shaping up offencively. A good defender and goaly will make this team a complete football team with a chance to win any game. I still dont like gangsters like rubo but i am proud that armenia has been able to field such a talented team in such a short time despite all the hardships it has faced. HAYER HOOP TUR!

Agree 100%. Armenian soccer is headed in the right direction and now that they've had a taste of victory the last couple of years, they are going to get hungrier to win.There will be some setbacks but the days of being the doormat are over and would be unacceptable to the organization, fans, nation etc but as the article rightly noted, Armenia is weak on defense and will soon be weak at goaltending when Berezovsky eventually retires. They need some speed and size in the back end. Offensively if these core players continue to play together, Armenia has a dangerous team as you said. The player I admire the most is Movsisyan. He anchors it all.