2013: Conquering the world... almost.

It was a successful year with our share of hardware to show for it, but we also had some close calls. Let's begin with how the year finished up with Algeria

Algeria
After a monumental 3rd place finish in the Confederations Cup, there was still work to be done as we worked toward finishing the job in qualifying for Brazil 2014.

After a 6-0 run out over Syria, the key stretch of qualifying began. First, at chief rivals Senegal. Karim Ziani's 58th minute goal was good enough for a 1-1 draw and a very big point on the road.

Next was a visit to Angola. Said Zitouni made a huge impression in only his second cap, netting a hat trick in the 3-1 victory. Zitouni is a big prospect up front and he spurned his home country of France to join our setup. After that performance, it will be hard to keep him out of the squad.

Finally, Senegal returned for our second match of the qualifying round. With only lowly Libya left on the schedule and a 2 point lead over Senegal in the table, a draw would likely have been good enough. Senegal jumped out ahead 1-0 in the 27th minute with a strike by Zargo Toure and looked to spoil what was an amazing cycle. But Amine Linganzi (55) and my former club player Feham Bouazza (75) each scored and we held on for the 2-1 comeback victory and clinched qualification.

After the win, it was time to begin looking for players for the 23-man World Cup squad. Despite playing a primarily inexperienced squad, it was team staples Rafik Djebbour (41, 86) and Sofiane Hanni (52) who stole the glory in a 4-0 walk over Libya in the final qualifier.

We won our qualifying group by 5 points, with 5 wins and a draw, 18 goals scored to 3 goals against. Libya actually finished third with 4 points thanks to shock 1-0 win over Angola, who pulled up the rear with only 3.

In our final match of the year, a friendly against arch-rival Morocco, Abdelkader Ghezzal (18) and Karim Ziani (25) scored to open up a 2-0 lead. It wouldn't last, however, as Morocco equalized before the half and no one scored in the second half and it ended 2-2.

Our business with Senegal isn't finished, as were drawn together in Group C of the CAF Cup of Nations in January. Our other opponents in the pool are Tunisia and Burkina Faso. After winning the ACN in 2012, we are looking to defend our title. It will also give us a chance to evaluate players in selecting the World Cup squad.

Speaking of the World Cup squad, we learned our draw. It's a pretty favorable one with all things considered. In order, our Group B opponents will be Paraguay, Serbia, and Croatia. In order to prepare, we scheduled a friendly at Norway, and fellow qualifier Uruguay a week before the tournament begins.

Palmeiras
--Campeonato Brasileiro Serié A
Very successful season in the domestic league. At times we struggled to find the net, but hit our stride and ended up with a league leading 65 goals scored and only surrendered 18, second best. We won the league with 101 points (32W-5D-1L), 26 clear of last years champion Cruzeiro.

We won several awards, starting with my Manager of the Year trophy. The others: Goalkeeper of the Year-Renan Ribeiro
Central Defender of the Year-Marício Ramos
Striker of the Year-Ciro, Best Player-Ciro
Player of the Year-Marício Ramos
Young Player of the Year-Rafael

We had 4 players in the team of the Year:
GK: Renan Ribeiro
DC: Marício Ramos
MC: Cleiton Xavier
ST: Ciro

--Club World Cup
Winning the Copa Libertadores qualified us for the FIFA Club World Cup against the winners of other continental competitions. We were drawn strait into the quarterfinals against Chivas, who won the CONCACAF Champions League. Two first half goals from Ciro was enough to overcome a late effort by the Goats, and we advanced with a 2-1 victory.

In the final we met UEFA Champions League winners Juventus. Outmatched by the Italian club in pretty much every way, we hung with them stride for stride. Gabriel Silva scored in the 18th, equalizing after an own goal by Renan Ribeiro in the 11th. The score was level for most of the match with both sides having some good chances, but Romelu Lukaku scored the eventual winner for Juve in the 71st, and we lost 2-1 in the final. Still, a spirited effort to build on for next season.

The squad will probably be pretty different next year as we make the move toward younger players. Much of the transfer budget this year was spent on signing young, 15-18 year olds for the future. It probably means we'll take a hit next year but reap the benefits beyond, if I don't get sacked.