I'm not going to do like other websites that write scandalous headlines to force the readers to believe in something that was not quite like that.

But the question is; did Ronaldinho ask the Swedish footballer Johana Almgren to marry him?

"Romeonaldinho & Julihana Almgren"

I'm in the process of investigating the truth. I'm trying to get in touch with Ronaldinho's representatives or himself and also Johana in Sweden.

The fact is:

Swedish journalist Magnus PJ Larsson tells on his article for the online version on Swedish newspaper Borås Tidning, once the Brazilian Team arrived in the same hotel where the Swedish Women's Team was in Beijing, Johanna and some other players ran to the lobby to take pictures and get autographs. Once Ronaldinho set eyes on the Swedish beauty he moved past all the Chinese fans, got down on his knees and kissed her hand. "I was about to faint", revealed Johanna.

Later on he had one of his teammates invite Johanna up to his room. She gather a couple of her teammates, grabbed her camera and went there.

Ronaldinho and Johanna Almgren in the hotel in Beijing

Alexandre Pato guided them to the room and they had a great gestures conversation. (Ronaldinho barely speaks English and Johana's Spanish and Portuguese skills are almost zero). At a certain point Ronaldinho started talking to one of his buddies and the translation came fast "He is asking if you would like to marry him?" Johanna's answer was also pretty fast: "No". The primary reason was that Johanna has a boyfriend in Sweden. A lucky guy called Adam Reggiani. 

Ronaldinho wanted to exchange shirts and Johanna promptly got him a Swedish one but he promised to get her a Brazil shirt the next day. It didn't happen. When she showed up next morning to get her prize the "Brazilian Romeo" was sleeping. "I didn't dare to wake him up", explains Joahnna.

She still wants the shirt and I bet they exchange phone numbers so Ronaldinho might still have a chance of a second meeting.

What we don't know is if Ronaldinho's words were exactly "MARRY ME" or if something was lost in translation. That's why I'm investigating with some people I know at AC Milan to get Ronaldinho's version of this story.

Ronaldinho's personal life has for most of his career been discreet. Not everybody knows that he has a son named João who is probably 3 or 4 years old now.

Ronaldinho and his son João

His name and face are not always on the papers next to a hot model (or ugly transvestite) like the other Ronaldo. That's why this Olympic flirt has hit the papers intensively and that's why I want to go deeper and find out how interested the Brazilian star is in the Swedish beauty Johanna Almgren.

The Beautiful Johanna Almgren

So I'll follow up on this story and let's see if it will have a happy soap-opera ending or a greek tragedy one. Hahahaha...

So once again Mr. Sepp Blatter wants to control the number of foreign players in the european teams.

Great idea but very much improbable that will be approved by the UEFA members. And that's about it.

But I decided to write (and read your opinions) about it.

Mr. Blatter's idea is not just bullocks. It does have a good intention behind it. He claims (and he's right) that the way the big clubs are right now make it impossible for a smaller team to fight for a league title. And that is very bad for football, very bad for the national teams but very good for global business for those big clubs.

When we see a team like Arsenal for example. 25 foreign players and only 12 Brittish on the 2007-2008 squad.  With Internazionale  Milan from Italy it's even worse. Out of the 29 players on the regular first team only 4 are Italian. It's not rare to see Inter playing with a starting XI that features only Marco Materazzi as an italian born player (well and then he gets a red card and Inter ends up with 10 foreign footballers on the pitch).

It is a pleasure for the fans to see their team win titles and sweep their rivals off the map for one season but when it happens like in France where Olympique Lyon (10 foreigners) is about to win the French League for the 7th time in a row, I start to understand (and partially agree) with the FIFA President.

The main difference between me and SOME other people that write here at OleOle is that I'm absolutely NEUTRAL.

I love good football and I know some of you will say "if you love good football you should love the foreign presence because they give quality to the Brittish teams". 

They do. The English sides of Manchester United and Chelsea fought for the league this season and going to play for the continental title thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo, Tevez, Vidic, Anderson, Ballack, Drogba, Cech, Essien, etc... 

Of course there is also Lampard, Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole, Wayne Rooney BUT neither of the two teams could rely on an all-Brittish squad to get this far in the tournaments. WE KNOW THAT!

And as the powerful clubs become richer, more international and consequently more powerful we see the National Teams becoming weaker and weaker. England out of the Euro ... hmmm... that might say something... 

So, (try to) leave your passion aside just for little bit and think how much more exciting would be if we had other teams besides Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and ManU in England, Real Madrid and Barcelona (and sometimes Valencia) in Spain, Juventus, Inter and AC Milan in Italy, Olympique Lyon in France. 

What's your opinion on this? 

If you walk around almost every lower class neighborhood in Los Angeles (and I imagine that this might happen in many other big cities in the USA) you will see a soccer field or a park with kids and teenagers of different backgrounds playing soccer.

As right now I'm still recovering from my ACL surgery all I can do is sit and watch them play. But standing by the side-line it's possible to see a lot of talented young teens that could've already been scouted by the MLS teams but that's something you can forget about.

The 2008 season is going to start in March and on the MLS Official Website one can already find news about the College draft that will give the teams  the chance to pick the new talents from Universities from all over the country. I've always admired this school-oriented way that the American sports have to stimulate the students/athletes to pursuit their dreams while studying. I wish I had that chance when I was younger BUT I also believe that it would be a great advantadge for the league and for the evolution of soccer in the US to have a stronger scouting program.

The teams do promote tryouts but what kid, from Compton, Inglewood, Echo Park, South Central... will pay about $150 bucks for ONE day of tryouts???

Most of these talented kids that I've seen have hispanic backgrounds and are not even legal in the country. They come here with their parents to work VERY hard to give their family a better opportunity and they play an important role in the American society and economy.

And what is the most important for our subject here: THEY LOVE SOCCER!!!

So, why can't the MLS Teams get out of their comfortable zone and send some scouts out there. Make them go to the ghettos, (not only to the fancy suburbs) and bring some more passion into the league?

It's just an idea... What do you think?

Anyway... I'll get back to this subject soon!   

Um dia desses eu estava dirigindo pela manhã e ouvindo um programa de rádio na ESPN em espanhol e ouvi uma besteria tão grande que resolvi escrever a respeito!

Os locutores debatiam sobre quem seria o melhor goleiro das Américas hoje em dia. Até aí tudo tranquilo mas não demorou a notar que o debate SÓ girava em torno de  Guillermo Ochoa, Oswaldo Sanchez e um tal de Federico Vilar...

Será que os mexicanos são tão pretensiosos a ponto de axreditarem que o melhor goleiro das Américas necessariamente tem que vir do futebol mexicano?

Quando escrevi sobre a participação da equipe do Pachuca no Mudial da FIFA eu havia dito que a a "arrogancia mexicana poderia custar caro" e na época não houve muita contetação mas era exatamente sobre isso que eu falava. 

Eu penso o seguinte: o México é sim capaz de produzir bons jogadores e alguns goleiros de destaque mundial até - Antonio Carbajal, Jorge Campos e, mas recentemente, Oswaldo Sanchez e Guillermo Ochoa - mas quando em um debate jornalístico só se leva em consideração os atletas do seu próprio país algo só pode estar errado. Não é verdade?

O gartoto Ochoa já não pode ser mais considerado uma promessa, ele é uma grata realidade para o futebol mexicano. É talentoso e carismático mas aos 21 anos ainda tem que ganhar muita coisa antes de poder ser considerado o melhor do continente.

Sanchez já é parte da história do futebol azteca. Também talentoso e carismático, sempre teve sucesso nas equipes que jogou. No momento tenta recuperar sua forma após ter passado um bom tempo lutando contra uma lesão.

E esse tal de Vilar? Bem, ele ajudou sua equipe, o Atlante, a ganhar a liga mexicana mas isso não é o bastante para incluí-lo na lista dos melhores das américas não é? 

Os jornalistas mexicanos inclusive ignoraram que pelo segundo ano consecutivo o canadense Pat Onstad ajudou a equipe do Houston Dynamo a ganhar o título do Campeonato dos EUA de futebol, a MLS.

E aí chegamos em Rogério Ceni. O goleiro são-paulino ganhou, como titular e capitão da equipem entre outros títulos, 1 Copa Libertadores, ! Mundial de Clubes e os 2 últimos títulos brasileiros. Ah, e isso sem falar nos 78 gols que ele já marcou na carreira em mais de 700 jogos pelo São Paulo.

Em não quero ter a mesma atitude que os jornalistas mexicanos e afirmar categoricamente que o Rogério é melhor que o Ochoa ou qualquer outro goleiro. O que me incomoda é a arrogância que a imprensa mexicana tem de achar que seu país tem os melhores jogadores do continente. SEMPRE. Isso inclusive faz parte do sério problema que aflige a seleção daquele país. A imprensa enche a bola deles, eles ganham uma partida do Brasil e quando enfrentam a Argentina dão vexame (às vezes nem conseguem vencer os EUA).  

E qual foi o último título internacional ganho pela seleção do México. Ah é... em 2003 a Copa da CONCACAF (que conta com equipes como Gahamas e Guadalupe) e uma Copa das Confederaçoes de 1999. E mais NADA!

E quanto aos times mexicanos? Bem, o Pachuca ganhou até con mérito a Sulamericana de 2006 e só!

E depois ainda tenho que ouvir a imprensa mexicana dizer que a Copa Libertadores não seria a mesma sem as equipes do México.

Tem que ter "mucha" paciência viu?!?!

ah, e uma última coisa: SE ELES BOBEAREM E SUBESTIMAREM A GUATEMALA E O CANADÁ EU NÃO DUVIDO QUE A JOVEM (E TALENTOSA) SELEÇÃO MEXICANA COM GIOVANI DOS SANTOS, VELA, OCHOA e NERI CASTILLO, ACABE FICANDO DE FORA DAS OLÍMPIADAS.

É ESPERAR PRA VER!

Estava en mi carro hoy por la mañana y tuve que escuchar una gran incoerencia!

En ESPN Radio estavam a debater quien es el mejor portero de las Americas. Bueno hasta ahí todo bien pero logo percebi que el debate se resumia a Guillermo Ochoa, Oswaldo Sanchez y Federico Vilar...

Entonces la conclusión seria que el mejor portero de las Americas juga en el fútbol mexicano?

Cuando escribi cerca de la participacion de Pachuca en el Mundial de Clubes de la FIFA yo dijo que "la arrogancia mexicana podría costar caro" y no me contestarán mucho pero es de eso que hablava allá.

Mira, mexico siempre tiene buenos jugadores y algunos gran porteros - Antonio Carbajal, Jorge Campos, y mas recente Oswaldo Sanchez e Guillermo Ochoa - Pero cuando un debate con periodistas solamente lleva en consideration el futbol de un país hay algo errado.

Ochoa no es más una promesa, ya es una realidad. Es un jóven, talentoso, un gran portero con un gran futuro. Pero hay que ganar mucha cosa ainda.

Sanchez marcó una época. Es talentoso, carismático, y tuve sucesso en los equipos que jugó. Ahora hay que trabajar para mejorar fisicamente de una lesion para volver a su mejor forma.

Vilar ganó con su equipo, Atlante, la liga mexicana y eso prueba que es un portero muy valoroso.

Pero por el segundo año seguido Pat Onstad ayudó el Houston Dynamo a ganãr la MLS.

Y que decir de Rogerio Ceni. El portero de San Pablo gaño como titular del equipo brasileño, entre otros títulos: 1 Copa Libertadores (2005), 1 Mundial de Clubes de la FIFA (2005), 2 Campeonatos Brasileiros 2006 y 2007...  y ya apuntó 78 goles en su carrera, la gran maioria de falta. Jugó mas de 700 partidos por San Pablo.

No estoy a decir que Rogerio Ceni sea necessariamente mejor que Ochoa o que cualquer otro. Pero esa arrogancia de la prensa de siempre creer que mexico tiene los mejores jugadores, SIEMPRE... es lo que hace con que el equipo se infle y sea capaz de ganar de Brasil (y se infla más) pero sea un desastre contra Argentina, y hasta los EEUU.

Cual fué el título internacional más recente de lá seleción mexicana? ah sí 2003 CONCACAF y 1999 Copa de las Confederaciones. Que más? NADA!

Y de los clubs? Pachuca ganó bravamente la Sudamericana en 2006... y solo!

Por favor PRENSA MEXICANA... No infle los equipos hasta el punto que ellos empezen a creer que son los mejores del mundo... Seán mas realistas! Así ayudarán el fútbol mexicano a jugar con mas ganas y a traer más títulos...

ah, una última cosa: NO SUBSTIMEN A GUATEMALA Y CANADA EN EL PRE-OLIMPICO, POR FAVOR!