From a Different Point of View – 4th Week of January Edition

Some Things You May Have Missed From the Last Week

    Africa Cup of Nations – The group stage of the 2012 edition is almost completed. At the time of writing group A has completed with Zambia and co-hosts Equatorial Guinea moving on, at the expense of favourites Senegal and feel-good story of the tournament Libya. The Ivory Coast, Gabon, Tunisia, and Ghana have all but assured their progression with the final three groups concluding in the coming days. For all your coverage needs, check out the fine work of Mark Gleeson over at Reuters, Jonathan Wilson’s offerings at both SI.com and The Guardian featuring the Ivory Coast, Ghana, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea, as well as Gary Al Smith’s round-up and Jerrad Peters look at the quarterfinals at The Score’s Footy Blog. 

    MLS All-Star Game – It was announced this past week that the 2012 midseason showcase would be held in Philadelphia; no opponent has been announced as of yet. Over at MLSsoccer.com, Simon Borg wrote an intriguing piece proposing that a meeting between the MLS All-Stars and an All-Star selection from the Mexican league would be an ideal event. An interesting idea.

    James Montague on the Israeli League - Over at the New York Times Mr. Montague, author of this month’s feature book When Friday Comes: Football in the War Zone tells the tale of the small club from a city near Northern Israel’s Lebanese Border, who find themselves at the top of the table.