2007: Education to the fore in Barcelona
Thursday 1 January 2009
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Europe's victorious 2007 UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup squad (©UEFA)
In November 2005 UEFA's Executive Committee approved an overhaul of the UEFA-CAF Meridian Cup, the sixth edition of which was held in Barcelona in spring 2007. Whereas the previous three events had featured Europe's top four Under-18 teams playing their African equivalents in a round-robin tournament, the emphasis was changed to a more educational concept with a conference, although a competitive element was retained with two games between selection squads.
'Symbolising solidarity'
"This is a unique competition," said UEFA President Michel Platini. "More than any other it symbolises solidarity and the embracing of other cultures. It is the cup of exchange and sharing, of youth and hope, a bridge between two continents united by a love of football but divided, unfortunately, by differing resources. UEFA currently has the means to pursue its ambitions, means that I believe it should share. As a game football has a social responsibility which it cannot ignore."
Europe excel
Europe continued to dominate on the pitch, winning 6-1 and 4-0, with Germany's Manuel Fischer scoring three goals and Aarón Ñíguez and Aleksandr Prudnikov managing two apiece. Europe head coach Iñaki Sáez and his African counterpart Frederick Osam-Duodu nevertheless believed the experience to be beneficial, the latter saying: "You win some and lose some; just because you lose doesn't mean you haven't played well. I'm pleased with everything apart from the result. The spirit and fraternity the boys have shown is really pleasing. We improved so much."
Varied presentations
The four-day conference was attended by more than 100 coaches from Europe and Africa, who were given a succession of presentations and took part in lively discussion groups. UEFA's technical director Andy Roxburgh gave presentations entitled 'Today's talents – tomorrow's heroes' and 'The art of goalscoring', while respected French coach Jacques Crevoisier discussed psychology and the Meridian Project Board met in Barcelona for a session described as "very positive" by chairman Şenes Erzik.
'Varied and interesting'
Roxburgh had no doubts the new format had been a success, saying: "In the past the Meridian Cup only touched a few countries so we decided we would create a conference and invite every country from Africa and Europe. We had representatives from 106 countries for the conference and had a very interesting four days, considering all aspects of player development. We were very lucky as we were able to watch FC Barcelona's first-team training and also see their youth team on the training ground. We saw our two Meridian teams at work which was also advantageous, so it was a very varied and interesting programme."
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