***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (1 Viewer)

[NewlyRetired]

Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl)

5/22/12 11:26 AM

Clint Dempsey (groin strain) has yet to get on field at US camp. With 5 games in 18 days coming up, I'm doubting he'll play vs Scotland Sat.

 

[NewlyRetired]

NEW YORK (AP) -- Chelsea's penalty-kicks win over Bayern Munich in the Champions League final got a 1.3 overnight rating and a 3 share on Fox, down 28 percent from the 1.8/5 for Barcelona's 3-1 victory over Manchester United last year.Chelsea's 4-3 shootout win following a 1-1 tie Saturday was up 18 percent from the 1.1/3 for Inter Milan's 2-0 win over Bayern in 2010, the first Champions League final played on a Saturday.Barcelona-Manchester United was a more attractive matchup, featuring stars Lionel Messi and Wayne Rooney.Miami and Austin, Texas, tied for the highest rating at 2.6, followed by Dallas (2.2), and Washington D.C. and New York (each 2.1).The overnights sample the 56 largest markets, with the rating representing the percentage watching among television households, and the share the percentage of those tuned in among those homes with televisions on at the time.National ratings will be released Thursday.

 

[LHUCKS]

Speaking of ####### disgraces, Nike pulled an Oregon on Barca's new kits.

I don't know which designer at Nike is in love with 1970s MLB uniforms, but I wish they'd keep it to themselves.

I kind of like them.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Reminder for those that are interested in seeing the US Scotland game this weekend on NBCSN. You need to hope that the Kings win one of the next two games against the Coyotes to avoid a game 7 conflict on NBCSN.

No one has mentioned yet if the soccer game will be moved to another NBC channel if the conflict occurs.

The game will be on Galavision in any case.

 

[NewlyRetired]

No ABC games this year for Euro 2012. Mostly ESPN with some games on ESPN2

Match schedule (Subject to change):

Date Time (ET) Match Site Networks

Friday, June 8

12 p.m. Poland vs. Greece Warsaw ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Russia vs. Czech Republic Wroclaw ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Saturday, June 9

12 p.m. Netherlands vs. Denmark Kharkiv ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Germany vs. Portugal Lviv ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Sunday, June 10

12 p.m. Spain vs. Italy Gdansk ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Republic of Ireland vs. Croatia Poznan ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Monday, June 11

12 p.m. France vs. England Donetsk ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Ukraine vs. Sweden Kiev ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Tuesday, June 12

12 p.m. Greece vs. Czech Republic Wroclaw ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Poland vs. Russia Warsaw ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Wednesday, June 13

12 p.m. Denmark vs. Portugal Lviv ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Netherlands vs. Germany Kharkiv ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Thursday, June 14

12 p.m. Italy vs. Croatia Poznan ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Spain vs. Republic of Ireland Gdansk ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Friday, June 15

12 p.m. Ukraine vs. France Donetsk ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Sweden vs. England Kiev ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Saturday, June 16

2:45 p.m. Czech Republic vs. Poland Wroclaw ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Greece vs. Russia Warsaw ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes at 5:30 p.m.

Sunday, June 17

2:45 p.m. Portugal vs. Netherlands Kharkiv ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Denmark vs. Germany Lviv ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes at 5:30 p.m.

Monday, June 18

2:45 p.m. Croatia vs. Spain Gdansk ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Italy vs. Republic of Ireland Poznan ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes at 5:30 p.m.

Tuesday, June 19

2:45 p.m. England vs. Ukraine Donetsk ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

2:45 p.m. Sweden vs. France Kiev ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes at 5:30 p.m.

Thursday, June 21

2:45 p.m. Quarterfinal I – 1A vs. 2B Warsaw ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Friday, June 22

2:45 p.m. Quarterfinal II – 1B vs. 2A Gdansk ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Saturday, June 23

2:45 p.m. Quarterfinal III – 1C vs. 2D Donetsk ESPN2/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Sunday, June 24

2:45 p.m. Quarterfinal IV – 1D vs. 2C Kiev ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Wednesday, June 27

2:45 p.m. Semifinal I – Winners QF I vs. QF III Donetsk ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Thursday, June 28

2:45 p.m. Semifinal II – Winners QF II vs. QF IV Warsaw ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

Sunday, July 1

2:45 p.m. Final – Semifinal Winners Kiev ESPN/ESPN3/ESPN Deportes

*** ESPN Deportes match coverage will begin at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

*** ESPN and ESPN2 match coverage begins at 11:45 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Don't know if we have any FFA guys in this area but this would be a fun take, especially being free

================

CHICAGO (May 14, 2012) - All U.S. Soccer fans are invited to attend the U.S. Men’s National Team public training session Friday, May 25, from 5-6 p.m. ET at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Fla.

Admission and parking are free and open to the public. Fans will enter through Gate 3, located at the northeast corner of the stadium.

U.S. Soccer Supporters Club members will receive premium seating at the public training session. If fans wish to take part in this exclusive priority, they can join the U.S. Soccer Supporters Club through ussoccer.com or at the stadium on the day of the training session.

The United States will take on Scotland in the first match for the USA in Jacksonville in more than a decade. Kickoff on May 26 is set for 8 p.m. ET. Tickets starting at $22 are on sale at ussoccer.com, by phone at 1-800-745-3000 and at all Ticketmaster ticket centers throughout the Jacksonville area (including many Walmart stores). Groups of 20 or more can obtain an order form at ussoccer.com or call 312-528-1290.

Ultimate Fan Tickets (special VIP packages that include a premium ticket, a custom made official U.S. National Team jersey with name and number, VIP access to the field before and after the game, and other unique benefits) are also available exclusively through ussoccer.com.

U.S. Soccer will send out additional information about the session, stadium access points, parking and more via email 24 hours prior to the event to those who RSVP. All training times and locations are subject to change.

 

[The Gator]

Martin Kelly called up to the England squad

Richards> suck it

 

[Moe.]

Martin Kelly called up to the England squad Richards> suck it

I believe that is just for the friendly against Norway on Saturday, which I'm sure Richards would rather not be a part of.I still can't get over Richards not being selected. Of course I'm no expert but if I was putting an England team together he'd probably be one of the first ten names. Am I just way overrating him or something? Do most people consider Glen Johnson to be better than Richards?

 

[NewlyRetired]

I highly recommend this behind the scenes look at US National team training in Orlando to help you get excited for the batch of games coming up.

Danny Williams speaks better English than I do.

 

[The Z Machine]

David Villa will NOT be playing in the EUROs. That means that Llorente, Soldado, or Torres will see more time.

Who do you choose?

 

[Slapdash]

David Villa will NOT be playing in the EUROs. That means that Llorente, Soldado, or Torres will see more time.Who do you choose?

Soldado

 

[NewlyRetired]

I love Bruce Arena's glibness with the media.

When asked if he was going to miss Donovan and Keane over the next few weeks he answered something to the affect of "why would I? It is not like we are winning any games when they are here"

 

[The Z Machine]

David Villa will NOT be playing in the EUROs. That means that Llorente, Soldado, or Torres will see more time.Who do you choose?

Soldado

I'm thinking that way too. I wouldn't give Torres to the auto-start, but I wouldn't keep him out of the rotation in any friendlies they might play before EUROs. I'd bring Llorente in as a 2nd striker if they need a goal.

 

[derek245583]

Martin Kelly called up to the England squad Richards> suck it

I believe that is just for the friendly against Norway on Saturday, which I'm sure Richards would rather not be a part of.I still can't get over Richards not being selected. Of course I'm no expert but if I was putting an England team together he'd probably be one of the first ten names. Am I just way overrating him or something? Do most people consider Glen Johnson to be better than Richards?

Richards is a stud imoBut I am also a homer and I dont watch enough of everyone else.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

WOOOOHOOOOO! What a match. What a season. So happy right now. Congrats CM and the rest of Chelsea Nation!!

Congrats Native - what a run! From needing Genk to draw Leverkusen on the final day to win the group, losing 3-1 away to Napoli to set up Ivanovic' 105th min goal at the Bridge to advance, "outplayed" by Benfica in both legs (according to Jorge Jesus) only to face Barca who were supposed to crush us and then facing Bayern in Munich with Ryan Bertrand and Kalou as our wingers. Unbelievable nerve from these guys. Two trophies from this season and back in the Champions League next - it is amazing.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Reminder for those that are interested in seeing the US Scotland game this weekend on NBCSN. You need to hope that the Kings win one of the next two games against the Coyotes to avoid a game 7 conflict on NBCSN. No one has mentioned yet if the soccer game will be moved to another NBC channel if the conflict occurs. The game will be on Galavision in any case.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Brad Guzan rejected the offer from Aston Villa and has been released from the team as a free agent. Hopefully he lands somewhere where he can be the number 1 keeper.

 

[NewlyRetired]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

Premier League clubs lost £392m last year despite record £2.2bn income• Only five Premier League clubs made a profit in 2010-11• Manchester City's £197m loss the biggest in football historyDavid Connguardian.co.uk, Wednesday 23 May 2012 12.14 EDTThe Premier League's 20 clubs collectively made a loss of £392m last year, after spending all of their record £2.2bn income. Of the clubs which were in the Premier League in 2010‑11, the year of most clubs' latest published accounts, only five, 25%, made a profit, of £71m in total.Of the other clubs, 14 made losses, totalling £463.4m. Manchester City, in the third year since Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi's ruling family bought the club and began to pour in money to acquire a team capable of winning the Premier League, lost £197m, the greatest financial loss in the history of football.Chelsea lost the next highest amount, £68m, bankrolled by their owner, the Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich, who loaned £94m to the club during 2010‑11. Liverpool, documenting the first eight months of ownership by John Henry's Fenway Sports Group, lost £49m.Birmingham City, now in the Championship, have failed to file their accounts for 2010‑11, which were statutorily due on 31 December. The club's parent company, Birmingham International Holdings, registered on the Hong Kong stock exchange, has not yet published its own accounts, and Carson Yeung, who led the takeover of the club in 2009, is awaiting trial on money-laundering charges, which he denies.The clubs' combined turnover of £2.2bn is partly the result of the first year of the Premier League's 2010‑13 TV deals, in which a record £1.5bn was earned from overseas broadcasters. The financial figures portray a league of fierce sporting competition which relentlessly forces up players' wages.In total, £1.5bn was spent on wages by the 20 clubs in 2011 (including Birmingham's £38m wage bill in 2009‑10). That accounted for 69% of the clubs' total income, slightly up from the 68% of income the clubs spent in 2009‑10 on wages.The largest profit was recorded by Newcastle United, in their first season back in the Premier League since relegation in 2009. The accounts were published before last summer's transfer spending, swollen by the £35m sale to Liverpool of the striker Andy Carroll, which netted £33m profit. Manchester United, despite spending £50m in interest on the debts loaded on to the club by United's owners, the Glazer family, won the championship having spent less on wages, at £153m, than Chelsea and City, and still made a profit of £12m.Liverpool, by contrast, made an operating loss of £90m. Had they not recorded a profit of £43m for the sale of players, including £50m from Chelsea for Fernando Torres (the money spent on buying players, such as Carroll, is accounted for more gradually), Liverpool would have stated a much greater overall loss than the £49m final figure.Richard Scudamore, chief executive of the league which this season celebrated 20 years since it was formed by a breakaway of the old Football League First Division clubs, has rejected introducing a form of "financial fair play". Such rules, designed to make clubs break even rather than rack up losses, whether bankrolled by an owner or not, have been agreed by Uefa for its competitions and, more recently, by the Football League.In the Premier League, clubs playing in Uefa's Champions League or Europa League must comply with financial fair play over this year and next. Even the two which are lavishly backed, Chelsea and City, have stated they want to move towards breaking even.Lower down, most clubs make losses in the effort to stay up. The Wigan Athletic owner, Dave Whelan, who wrote off £48m in loans to the club last August, said that financial fair play "can only be a good thing … for football in general to ensure that debt is maintained at reasonable and sustainable levels".

 

[NewlyRetired]

I wonder what JK is referring to in the bolded below

================

On Landon Donovan's return to the U.S. squad

"We had a good meeting after the Italy game. I said, 'We need you.' Whatever happened, I'm not the kind of person who digs into the past about little things. I said, 'Landon, this group is starting to build a special kind of chemistry. Don't miss out.' There's a really good vibe now -- the attitude in training is tremendous. Does he know everybody? Absolutely. But it's a new cycle, and obviously it's a completely different coaching staff. We do things differently. He needs to find his spot in that new environment. And he's cool with that. We're excited to have him. We can't wait to throw him out there and build that kind of fine-tuning element we need to."

 

[NewlyRetired]

Brad Guzan rejected the offer from Aston Villa and has been released from the team as a free agent. Hopefully he lands somewhere where he can be the number 1 keeper.

FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer)5/23/12 12:47 PMDespite today's reports of his release, sources tell us Brad Guzan still counts Aston Villa among his options this summer (@SoccerByIves)

 

[NewlyRetired]

CONCACAF elected Jeffrey Webb of the Cayman Island Football Association as President today.

And once again the minnows are in charge of our region :(

 

[NewlyRetired]

Joey Barton received a 12-game suspension for his actions in the last game of the season.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Brian Sciaretta just tweeted that Parkhurst is starting at left back again in their huge game today.

If they win, they qualify directly into the Champions League group stage and will likely be one of the smallest clubs ever to do so.

 

[CBusAlex]

CONCACAF elected Jeffrey Webb of the Cayman Island Football Association as President today.And once again the minnows are in charge of our region :(

I wonder if New Zealand has to deal with this kind of ####.

 

[GoFishTN]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

Premier League clubs lost £392m last year despite record £2.2bn income• Only five Premier League clubs made a profit in 2010-11• Manchester City's £197m loss the biggest in football history

I have only followed soccer for a few years, so I genuinely would like to know. Have top tier clubs ever broke even or made a profit in the last 20-30 years?

 

[jonessed]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

Premier League clubs lost £392m last year despite record £2.2bn income• Only five Premier League clubs made a profit in 2010-11• Manchester City's £197m loss the biggest in football history

I have only followed soccer for a few years, so I genuinely would like to know. Have top tier clubs ever broke even or made a profit in the last 20-30 years?

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

Premier League clubs lost £392m last year despite record £2.2bn income• Only five Premier League clubs made a profit in 2010-11• Manchester City's £197m loss the biggest in football history

I have only followed soccer for a few years, so I genuinely would like to know. Have top tier clubs ever broke even or made a profit in the last 20-30 years?

Yes, RM and Bayern have historically been very profitable and I'm sure there are others. Barca was about break-even this year and RM made a substantial profit. The overwhelming majority of soccer teams have to run like businesses or cease to exist.There are only two EPL clubs that have no budget and they account for almost 70% of the EPL losses. Once you spread the remainder around the losses don't seem to be out of line with what one might expect in the current global economy.

 

[jonessed]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

 

[ditkaburgers]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

One significant difference between European football clubs and American sports franchises is that there generally hasn't been huge asset appreciation over there. In the US, even teams that are claiming operating losses have been able to sell to the next ownership group with a large profit over their original purchase price.

 

[NewlyRetired]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

I disagree. The wages are being pushed up higher than can be supported. The wages are increasing because teams feel the need to keep up. Blame Chelsea and Man City all you want be the real stat is that only 5 teams made a profit last year. That is not a strategy for long term financial health unless every owner intends to use the equity growth in the team to sell and get out from under the massive amount of debt each team has. Look at the debt numbers. They are scary for even a bad economy IMO and these numbers do not even include this past season. http://www.channel4.com/news/premier-league-the-alternative-results-table

 

[NewlyRetired]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

Premier League clubs lost £392m last year despite record £2.2bn income• Only five Premier League clubs made a profit in 2010-11• Manchester City's £197m loss the biggest in football history

I have only followed soccer for a few years, so I genuinely would like to know. Have top tier clubs ever broke even or made a profit in the last 20-30 years?

It depends how you look at it. Teams like Man U turn a profit (which is admirable in this day and age) but peel back the onion a bit to look at their debt and it paints a different picture.

 

[NewlyRetired]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

One significant difference between European football clubs and American sports franchises is that there generally hasn't been huge asset appreciation over there. In the US, even teams that are claiming operating losses have been able to sell to the next ownership group with a large profit over their original purchase price.

Shoot, you made this point shortly before I did. This technique is really the only way a league stays solvent and it is a scary slope because there is a chance in any given decade that a bubble could burst leaving the last owner in holding the bag.

 

[jonessed]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

I disagree. The wages are being pushed up higher than can be supported. The wages are increasing because teams feel the need to keep up. Blame Chelsea and Man City all you want be the real stat is that only 5 teams made a profit last year. That is not a strategy for long term financial health unless every owner intends to use the equity growth in the team to sell and get out from under the massive amount of debt each team has. Look at the debt numbers. They are scary for even a bad economy IMO and these numbers do not even include this past season. http://www.channel4.com/news/premier-league-the-alternative-results-table

Arsenal shows a debt-load of almost $100M and they are in great financial shape. One of the best run clubs in the world.From that table teams like Bolton and Fulham may be over-leveraged, but there is really no way to know unless you open their books.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta)

5/23/12 3:47 PM

The Danish title has been won by the tiny club of Nordsjaelland. Now 3-0 up on Horsens in 89th! Off to the Champions League groups stage!

Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta)

5/23/12 3:49 PM

And for those wondering, Michael Parkhurst is have another very strong game. He will enter into #usmnt camp playing great soccer

=============

What a fantastic achievement for such a small club. The second goal was scored by Michael Laudrup's son. Good lord I am old

 

[jonessed]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

Premier League clubs lost £392m last year despite record £2.2bn income• Only five Premier League clubs made a profit in 2010-11• Manchester City's £197m loss the biggest in football history

I have only followed soccer for a few years, so I genuinely would like to know. Have top tier clubs ever broke even or made a profit in the last 20-30 years?

It depends how you look at it. Teams like Man U turn a profit (which is admirable in this day and age) but peel back the onion a bit to look at their debt and it paints a different picture.

Their debt-load is fine. Not only can they service it, but they are actively paying it off and still competing at the highest level. That's the sign of a healthy business, not one that should be panic-stricken.The biggest problems emerge at the lower end of the spectrum when teams spend like crazy to try and not get relegated. Given the financial windfall of the premiere league it makes sense, but treading that fine line can be difficult financially.

 

[Moe.]

Excellent news for Parkhurst. Is he expected to stay with them next season? We might actually have ourselves a competent left back. I'm gonna miss Johnny B.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta)5/23/12 3:47 PMThe Danish title has been won by the tiny club of Nordsjaelland. Now 3-0 up on Horsens in 89th! Off to the Champions League groups stage!Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta)5/23/12 3:49 PMAnd for those wondering, Michael Parkhurst is have another very strong game. He will enter into #usmnt camp playing great soccer=============What a fantastic achievement for such a small club. The second goal was scored by Michael Laudrup's son. Good lord I am old

I just read that this team has the 3rd smallest budget in the Danish Fist division. Amazing. The money they are going to make in the group stage even with out getting a single point has to be incredible compared to their normal budget.Remember this is a team whose home stadium barely holds 10k people.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Excellent news for Parkhurst. Is he expected to stay with them next season? We might actually have ourselves a competent left back. I'm gonna miss Johnny B.

He actually played RB today (mistake in earlier tweet from Brian), but has played all 4 back line positions this season.When he was at NE I watched him play almost every game for 4 years (over a 100 games) and he was almost entirely just a center back at that time.

 

[NewlyRetired]

From Brian Sciaretta

Parkhurst and Jones directly into the Champions League Group Stage

Sacha, Gatt* and Gerzicich** will go into Champions League Qualifiers

============================

*Josh Gatt is a rising star. He went to Europe right out of high school in Michigan. He is only 20 and plays for Molde in Finland. He is number 22 in these clips

**Bryan Gerzicich was born in LA and plays in Isreal. Never seen him play.

 

[NewlyRetired]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

Premier League clubs lost £392m last year despite record £2.2bn income

• Only five Premier League clubs made a profit in 2010-11

• Manchester City's £197m loss the biggest in football history

I have only followed soccer for a few years, so I genuinely would like to know. Have top tier clubs ever broke even or made a profit in the last 20-30 years?

It depends how you look at it. Teams like Man U turn a profit (which is admirable in this day and age) but peel back the onion a bit to look at their debt and it paints a different picture.

Their debt-load is fine. Not only can they service it, but they are actively paying it off and still competing at the highest level. That's the sign of a healthy business, not one that should be panic-stricken.

You must be reading different articles than I am. This article does not paint any where near the pretty picture you are portraying.=================================================================

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2145794/Manchester-United-net-debt-rises-26m.html

£250,000 a DAY! The astonishing amount United pay to meet their massive debt

By Ian Ladyman and Sam Cunningham

PUBLISHED: 07:59 EST, 17 May 2012 | UPDATED: 14:09 EST, 17 May 2012

Manchester United are bracing themselves for a new supporter backlash after their latest accounts revealed they lost £71million to financial obligations imposed by owners the Glazers over the last nine months.

While neighbors Manchester City have been taking the Barclays Premier League trophy from them and signing players like Sergio Aguero and Yaya Toure in recent times, figures released on Thursday showed much of the Old Trafford revenue has been lost to interest payments and bond buybacks.

Put in simple terms, the money lost as United try to service debt levels that still stand at more than £420m is equivalent to £250,000 a day.

On Thursday night United supporters were aghast as the ongoing financial issues surrounding the Glazers' ownership became clear - days after the club's chief executive David Gill admitted they cannot compete with City in terms of player salaries.

Speaking at the Premier League awards this week, Gill said: 'It depends a bit on the player and his advisers and agent. If that player says, "I am relaxed, I can either go to City, United or Chelsea and it will just come down to a money thing", then they may out-muscle us. But that's their choice. We have our own parameters.'

While United's accounts say gross debt has dropped by £61.2m from £484.5m to £423.3m - a 12.6 per cent reduction - this is countered by the club's cash reserves falling from £113m to £25.6m, a reduction of £87.4m.

In short, this means United are £26m worse off than 12 months ago.

A 5.8 per cent fall in total revenue - from £75.2m to £70.8m - reflects United's exit from the Champions League at the group stage and an early defeat in the FA Cup.

But Gill remains upbeat and is confident United can remain competitive on the field and in the transfer market, saying: 'City have taken it to another level but you can only have 25 players in the squad, so you can't buy all the best players.

'We don't think they've got all the best players and nor can Chelsea, nor can Manchester United. That's why, with (Sir) Alex Ferguson as the manager and the scouting system and the resources, we'll make sure we improve the squad as necessary and continue to be up there.

'City have a great team and squad, they won the League and we congratulate them. We've got to concentrate on our own club and look at where we fell short and what we have to do to improve that.

'You can only control what you can control and we'll do that. Our turnover and cash profits demonstrate that we can invest in players as necessary. We did it last year when we bought three players.

'We still pay very good salaries. Other clubs may pay slightly more but I think that a player coming to Manchester United has the benefit of playing in front of 76,000 every week, our history and heritage.

'Also, the commercial spin-offs if they want to choose to go down that route are probably better at Manchester United than other clubs, arguably anyway. We shouldn't be shy or embarrassed or worried about not being able to attract top players because I firmly believe we can. With Alex and what we offer as a club many people want to come and play for us.'

United confirmed Michael Owen is being released after failing to overcome the injuries that blighted his three seasons at Old Trafford.

The former England striker, 32, has indicated he would like to play for another Premier League club or move abroad.

'I don't think I have lost the ability to score goals or play at a high level,' he said.

'If they (his new club) are not in the Premier League, it may be further afield. I don't think the Championship would be an option.'

 

[ditkaburgers]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

I disagree. The wages are being pushed up higher than can be supported. The wages are increasing because teams feel the need to keep up. Blame Chelsea and Man City all you want be the real stat is that only 5 teams made a profit last year. That is not a strategy for long term financial health unless every owner intends to use the equity growth in the team to sell and get out from under the massive amount of debt each team has. Look at the debt numbers. They are scary for even a bad economy IMO and these numbers do not even include this past season. http://www.channel4.com/news/premier-league-the-alternative-results-table

Arsenal shows a debt-load of almost $100M and they are in great financial shape. One of the best run clubs in the world.From that table teams like Bolton and Fulham may be over-leveraged, but there is really no way to know unless you open their books.

Arsenal is different in that most of their debt is stadium related. Even considering their costs to service the debt, they're in a better financial position than when they were at Highbury. Wenger's tight purse has helped though.

 

[The Z Machine]

Excellent news for Parkhurst. Is he expected to stay with them next season? We might actually have ourselves a competent left back. I'm gonna miss Johnny B.

He actually played RB today (mistake in earlier tweet from Brian), but has played all 4 back line positions this season.When he was at NE I watched him play almost every game for 4 years (over a 100 games) and he was almost entirely just a center back at that time.

That's great versatility. Something I look for when I play FM...

 

[The Z Machine]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

I disagree. The wages are being pushed up higher than can be supported. The wages are increasing because teams feel the need to keep up. Blame Chelsea and Man City all you want be the real stat is that only 5 teams made a profit last year. That is not a strategy for long term financial health unless every owner intends to use the equity growth in the team to sell and get out from under the massive amount of debt each team has. Look at the debt numbers. They are scary for even a bad economy IMO and these numbers do not even include this past season. http://www.channel4.com/news/premier-league-the-alternative-results-table

Arsenal shows a debt-load of almost $100M and they are in great financial shape. One of the best run clubs in the world.From that table teams like Bolton and Fulham may be over-leveraged, but there is really no way to know unless you open their books.

Arsenal is different in that most of their debt is stadium related. Even considering their costs to service the debt, they're in a better financial position than when they were at Highbury. Wenger's tight purse has helped though.

It's possible that those tight purse strings are also preventing title winning teams. That said, Wenger might be setting up Arsenal for the post fair play rules situation.

 

[NewlyRetired]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

I disagree. The wages are being pushed up higher than can be supported. The wages are increasing because teams feel the need to keep up. Blame Chelsea and Man City all you want be the real stat is that only 5 teams made a profit last year. That is not a strategy for long term financial health unless every owner intends to use the equity growth in the team to sell and get out from under the massive amount of debt each team has.

Look at the debt numbers. They are scary for even a bad economy IMO and these numbers do not even include this past season.

http://www.channel4.com/news/premier-league-the-alternative-results-table

Arsenal shows a debt-load of almost $100M and they are in great financial shape. One of the best run clubs in the world.From that table teams like Bolton and Fulham may be over-leveraged, but there is really no way to know unless you open their books.

Arsenal is different in that most of their debt is stadium related. Even considering their costs to service the debt, they're in a better financial position than when they were at Highbury. Wenger's tight purse has helped though.

It's possible that those tight purse strings are also preventing title winning teams. That said, Wenger might be setting up Arsenal for the post fair play rules situation.

Arsenal having tight purse strings are directly tied to Aresenal having debt. Wenger himself says it's absolutely critical that the club be able to turn a profit to pay down the debt. ====

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/wenger-we-are-paying-back-our-stadium-debt

By Rob Kelly

Arsène Wenger has clarified his comments about needing to make money each summer by reiterating the Club’s obligation to pay off the debt of the construction of Emirates Stadium.

The Arsenal manager was quoted in a Belgian newspaper earlier this week, speaking of an “imperative” to generate a profit of at least £15 million to £20 million each season.

The Club operates effectively with a robust, self-sustaining business and cash reserves for player transfers, but the Frenchman is aware of the need to keep on reducing their 'mortgage'.

“I am surprised that you are surprised," he said at Friday's press conference. "Do you think the target of the Club is to lose money? That cannot last a long time. The target is to make a profit. It looks normal for any company in the world, so I don't know why it is surprising.

“We want to pay the debt we owe from the stadium we built, that's around £15 million [per year]. So it's normal that at the start, we have to make at least £15 million or we lose money.”

Wenger insists he does not feel that his hands are tied in the transfer market due to the financial requirements of the Club.

“I accept one basic principle for every company; that you can spend the money you make,” he said.

“It always looks like a massive surprise that I have to convince you of that. I think it is just natural common sense and logic.

“It is mathematical logic that what goes out has to equal what comes in. If that does not work then the company loses money.”

 

[NewlyRetired]

ESPN release the group of people who will serve as the announcing teams for Euro 2012

Ian Darke Steve McManaman

Adrian Healy Robbie Mustoe

Derek Rae Taylor Twellman

Derek Rae Kasey Keller

Twellman and Keller will also serve as studio analysts when not working with Rae.

====================

Long live the Revs

Rae, Twellman and Healy are all NE Revolution products

 

[jonessed]

EPL loses a ton of money again, led of course by Man City. The EPL is basically a house of cards with a horrible foundation. This simply can't last. Eventually the sugar daddy's funding this are going to stop. I don't know enough about financial fair play to understand if it can fix this type of mess.

The EPL is certainly not a house of cards. Most of the teams are in reasonable financial health. The numbers seem obscene because of Chelsea and City, but they are bankrolled by billionaires so their fiscal situation is largely irrelevant.

I disagree. The wages are being pushed up higher than can be supported. The wages are increasing because teams feel the need to keep up. Blame Chelsea and Man City all you want be the real stat is that only 5 teams made a profit last year. That is not a strategy for long term financial health unless every owner intends to use the equity growth in the team to sell and get out from under the massive amount of debt each team has.

Look at the debt numbers. They are scary for even a bad economy IMO and these numbers do not even include this past season.

http://www.channel4.com/news/premier-league-the-alternative-results-table

Arsenal shows a debt-load of almost $100M and they are in great financial shape. One of the best run clubs in the world.From that table teams like Bolton and Fulham may be over-leveraged, but there is really no way to know unless you open their books.

Arsenal is different in that most of their debt is stadium related. Even considering their costs to service the debt, they're in a better financial position than when they were at Highbury. Wenger's tight purse has helped though.

It's possible that those tight purse strings are also preventing title winning teams. That said, Wenger might be setting up Arsenal for the post fair play rules situation.

Arsenal having tight purse strings are directly tied to Aresenal having debt. Wenger himself says it's absolutely critical that the club be able to turn a profit to pay down the debt. ====

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/wenger-we-are-paying-back-our-stadium-debt

By Rob Kelly

Arsène Wenger has clarified his comments about needing to make money each summer by reiterating the Club’s obligation to pay off the debt of the construction of Emirates Stadium.

The Arsenal manager was quoted in a Belgian newspaper earlier this week, speaking of an “imperative” to generate a profit of at least £15 million to £20 million each season.

The Club operates effectively with a robust, self-sustaining business and cash reserves for player transfers, but the Frenchman is aware of the need to keep on reducing their 'mortgage'.

“I am surprised that you are surprised," he said at Friday's press conference. "Do you think the target of the Club is to lose money? That cannot last a long time. The target is to make a profit. It looks normal for any company in the world, so I don't know why it is surprising.

“We want to pay the debt we owe from the stadium we built, that's around £15 million [per year]. So it's normal that at the start, we have to make at least £15 million or we lose money.”

Wenger insists he does not feel that his hands are tied in the transfer market due to the financial requirements of the Club.

“I accept one basic principle for every company; that you can spend the money you make,” he said.

“It always looks like a massive surprise that I have to convince you of that. I think it is just natural common sense and logic.

“It is mathematical logic that what goes out has to equal what comes in. If that does not work then the company loses money.”

Their purse strings really aren't that tight anyway. Not even United can compete with the wages and transfer budgets of City and Chelsea. They have endless money.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Ives interview with JK. Talks about formations and why he did not select players like Adu, Sacha, Ream and Lichaj

=========================

As the US men’s national team training camp rolled on at sun-drenched Disney World, Jurgen Klinsmann put his team through the paces on Tuesday, as the squad played a closed-door scrimmage against a local club team.

The US team scored a pair of goals in the walk through, which saw the group divided into two teams, with Maurice Edu and Geoff Cameron playing the full match. Klinsmann sounded happy with the progress the team made and what he saw on the field.

“I wanted them to get a sense for the field, and a sense of how to break down a team that’s just going to lock themselves in,” Klinsmann said of Tuesday’s scrimmage. “Also how to deal with the weather conditions. It was about 100 (degrees) out there. We had most of them for 45 minutes.

“First half we did a bit more of a 4-3-2-1, a Christmas tree system, and in the second we did a 4-4-2, some times as a diamond and some times more flat, some coming over the wings because they were just standing there and closing everything down.”

Though it’s still early in camp, and players are still making their way into Orlando (Herculez Gomez arrives today), Klinsmann thought the scrimmage provided some good insight as the squad draws closer to Saturday’s match versus Scotland in Jacksonville.

“It was good to see how they adjust, how they read the game, how urgent they are, and how they solve situations,” Klinsmann said. “I think it was really worthwhile to do that work. And we’ll see now after more than a week of work where they’re at. Also, they need to get a sense for each other. They need to play.”

Klinsmann touched on a variety of topics Tuesday evening, including the preponderance of forwards and lack of natural wingers in camp. Klinsmann downplayed the notion that the large number of forwards in camp suggests the team is going to play more of a 4-3-3 in upcoming matches.

“It’s not necessarily based on how many wingers are out there, or more inside players,” Klinsmann said. “We will see who is really in the best condition and best shape, and who sparks it up, and then we’ll make our calls.

“The good thing is most of the players can play in different roles,” Klinsmann said. “Landon Donovan can tuck in, he can play wide. Graham Zusi can do that. Joe Corona played in the second half on the left wing, in tandem with Edgar Castillo. That’s something they do with their club so we saw a different element.”

Klinsmann also discussed some of the players who didn’t make the 27-player roster he called in, going into detail about the decision to not call in the likes of Eric Lichaj, Sacha Kljestan and Tim Ream.

“It came in too late for him, but it’s good that he broke in (at Aston Villa), “Klinsmann said of Lichaj. “If you look at certain positions, who are they kind of front-runners. Look at the central midfielder position. Michael Bradley, a Jermaine Jones, a Maurice Edu, a Kyle Beckerman.

“Then you have a Sacha Kljestan that you have to tell ‘You know what, sorry. You’ve had a good season but you’re not passing one of these four right now with their elements’. Then you don’t do them a favor to call them in.

“Like in Italy, it worked out great but we had to play (Kljestan) in a wide position and that’s not his position. He kind of sacrificed himself for the group,” Klinsmann said. “But now, bringing him here to be a fifth guy of two positions, then you’d rather him have a good break after a long season. That’s sort of how you juggle things with these players.”

Klinsmann wouldn’t come out and say that Lichaj was still behind the pack at fullback, but pointed to him needing more experience.

“All the outside positions we have a special eye on obviously,” Klinsmann said. “What he needs now is games. And Bedoya needs games. Who knows what happens now at Rangers. We have kids up in Scandinavia like Josh Gatt. We’ll observe it. That’s the good thing now about having Andy Hertzog and Mattias Hammann. They are all over the place in Europe. They go to those places. In Nordsdjaelland, they went to see Michael Parkhurst play against Clarence Goodson. It helps having a presence in Europe now with these guys, to look after them.”

Another player who was a bit of a surprising exclusion from the current camp was Bolton defender Tim Ream, who Klinsmann praised before revealing that, at the moment, he isn’t high enough on the depth chart for a call-up.

“Tim’s situation is similar to Sacha’s,” Klinsmann said. “They are players who are right there, but they can’t pass the four guys in front of them. Right now, Tim is not passing Gooch, Carlos, Clarence and Geoff Cameron. They are our four players locked in there as of today.

“I don’t know about tomorrow, but as of today that’s the situation,” Klinsmann said. “Now, if I put Tim on the standby list, he’s ready for the situation. I know if I called tomorrow, A.J. DeLaGarza or George John, they’re right here and get the job done.

“I told them, we observe everything, you deserve a big compliment, and we have you right in our sights. But the guys like Gooch and Boca, they’re not giving in right now.”

When asked about Freddy Adu, one of the standouts of the recent Under-23 Olympic Qualifying tournament, Klinsmann didn’t mince words about what the Philadelphia Union midfielder needs to do to earn a national team look.

“What we expect is that you put your stamp on your team, and there needs to come more,” Klinsmann said. “Freddy is not considered in that group because we need to see more. We need to see killer passes. We need to see goals. We need to see really creative elements because you’re an attacking midfielder.

“So you’re measured on what comes out at the end of the day. How many assists, how many goals you score. It’s not just playing.”

GUZAN BACKS LICHAJ

While Klinsmann remained non-committal about Eric Lichaj’s future with the national team, Lichaj’s Aston Villa teammate Brad Guzan had high praise for the 23-year-old fullback.

“I’ve seen him come up over the past four years, going from a more reserved young kid, reserve player, to a first-team player that’s expressed himself,” Guzan said of Lichaj. “You know what you’re going to get from him. He’s going to give one hundred percent every single time he steps on the pitch.

“It’s one of those situations where I think he was a bit unlucky not to be called in (to national team camp),” Guzan said. “He had a run of games where I thought he was one of our better players, and he’s only going to get better. These experiences he’s had playing against the Chelsea’s, Arsenal’s, Man City’s, all these top, top players, is only going to make him better. With that being said, he’s definitely got a bright future.”

Lichaj finished out the recent Premier League season as the starting left back for Aston Villa and is seen as one of the more surprising omissions from the current national team squad, particularly given the uncertain future of starting fullback Timmy Chandler, who turned down a call-up from Klinsmann.

Ives Galarcep is a senior writer for FOXSoccer.com covering Major League Soccer and the US National Team.

 

[GoFishTN]

Here are some pics of next seasons EPL kits. The Liverpool kit is amazing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/picturegalleries/9284469/Premier-League-kits-201213-in-pictures.html?frame=2227603

 

[Moe.]

Here are some pics of next seasons EPL kits. The Liverpool kit is amazing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/picturegalleries/9284469/Premier-League-kits-201213-in-pictures.html?frame=2227603

Love the green socks/trim on Swansea's.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Interview with Landon. Reading slightly beyween the lines it certainly sounds like he is all but done with soccer. If the US makes WC2014, I think he will retire either right after that or at the end of that MLS season. He sounds so burnt out.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- It hit me for the first time listening to Landon Donovan on Wednesday: the U.S.'s all-time leading scorer may be closer to the end of his soccer career than any of us thought.

Donovan turned 30 in March, and he's back with the national team here for the first time in eight months ahead of the U.S.'s five games between May 26 and June 12.

But Donovan is also a player who freely says that after playing in three World Cups, winning four MLS Cup titles and amassing 138 national team caps, his hunger isn't the same anymore. On Wednesday he spoke of wanting to play two more years with club and country "and then sort of reevaluate it from there," as he put it.

Donovan doesn't give a lot of interviews these days -- and almost never a one-on-one -- but he did sit down with a group of four U.S. journalists for 30 minutes on Wednesday ahead of Saturday's friendly against Scotland in Jacksonville (8 p.m. ET, NBC Sports Network, Galavisión). Donovan was thoughtful and candid, too. Here are several nuggets from the interview, edited for length and clarity:

Q: How does it feel to be back with the team?

Donovan: It's nice. It's been a long time. You almost forget what it's like to be back in camp. Just seeing a lot of the faces has been nice. I'm excited to play again, because it's been a long time. It's been too long for me.

Q: Did it start to wear on you that it became a stress for various reasons that you weren't able to come in?

Donovan: Yeah. It was frustrating. The end of last year there was a lot of different things going on. In truth I regret a little bit missing one or two of the camps, just because you lose touch with it. But there were different reasons, and I felt at the time it was the right thing to do. But this year was really frustrating, because I was really excited to go to the Italy game. The world works in weird ways sometimes, but for whatever reason that wasn't meant to be. It's nice to get back and hopefully earn my keep again and show that I belong to be here.

Q: Do you feel like you have to earn a spot back as a starter?

Donovan: Yeah. With national teams it's always different. When you're with your club team, every week you have a performance to judge. But when you're with the national team it's a little different because you might not play for three or four months at a time. Things change constantly. So from that aspect it makes it a little easier because you're coming in with a clean slate every time. But that being said, we all watched the last few games, in particular the Italy game [a 1-0 U.S. win in February], and the team played well. And anytime they play well, I've always been of the opinion that you keep a team that plays well. So I've got to find my way back in.

Q: Did you have any communication with Jurgen Klinsmann at all during that stretch [when Donovan wasn't playing for the national team]?

Donovan: We communicated a lot, whether it be via text or phone calls. And then in March or April we met at Home Depot

with Martín [Vásquez, Klinsmann's assistant] and talked a lot about how things had been going. Just keeping me in the loop and letting me know where things stood. It was good to have a chance to sit down and talk, and I could let him know how things were from my end. I think we were I hope both excited for me to get back here.

Q: Coaches are always observing players, but players are observing coaches, too. You've had a chance over the years to observe Klinsmann. What have you learned?

Donovan: We were all there in Germany [at World Cup 2006] and everyone got a little bit swept away by what he did with the German team and how he transformed them. Having played in Germany and knowing the German mentality, [i think] it was pretty remarkable that he was able to accomplish that. There's always been a respect from the outside for those things, but it's different when you get with a coach on a day-to-day basis and you can really see how they make those things happen. He didn't just show up during the World Cup and all of the sudden magic was happening on the field. There's a lot of work that goes into it, and I'm just now starting to understand and appreciate all that.

Q: How do you come back to find the hunger or whatever was motivating you in South Africa [at World Cup 2010]?

Donovan: It's not easy. I think all players reach a point in their career where it's natural to lose some of that hunger, that desire, to sort of break out or be a star. My mindset now is I want to be successful, and I realize now that as I'm getting older I'm not going to be the guy who's scoring goals every game or making a great impact all the time. I'm going to do it as much as I can in that way. But if I can be a part of the team and help lead it to successful times, then that's what I want to do.

I know at some point, and I had a small brush with this with Bob [bradley] last time at the Gold Cup, at some point the time will come when I'm not a first-choice player. And the challenge then will be how do I still make a positive impact? I want to be a positive influence. I want to be someone who they want to call in and want here consistently, regardless of my role.

Q: Was there burnout from playing so many games with this group? You've been with this group since you were 18. Was it natural for that to happen?

Donovan: I think it's probably part of any job, but it's magnified in athletics. The reality is that people don't really care about that part of it. They show up and they want to see you play and perform. That's a part that's always a challenge for athletes: trying to keep the passion alive while knowing it's still your job. There's no question that at some point, probably sooner rather than later, I'll be pretty burned out. And when that time comes, then I'll take a step back and take a look at it and see if I want to keep going.

Q: How have you changed in these last two years?

Donovan: There's been some transformation in the way the sport is for me now. In 2010 I was so eager to show myself that I could still do it. 2006 was so disappointing. There was that sort of passion and hunger. Candidly, the last few years -- last year included, even though we won the championship [in L.A.] -- there's more of a reality that I'm not going to be able to do this forever. I'm not going to want to do this forever. I know that I have many better things and greater things to do in my life still.

There's a natural point where it's not as fun anymore, not as enjoyable, and you still try to find ways to keep it enjoyable. I used to think maybe if I'm still fit I can play a long time. I think from a mental standpoint now I'm realizing if I'm not enjoying it I'm not going to play. I still enjoy it to a large extent, but I've always promised myself that if that ever goes away I'm not going to play just to play.

Q: You've consciously chosen to reduce your profile in the media a bit, not doing many one-on-ones. Why?

Donovan: Yeah. I'm to the point where this might sound crazy, but I like [being a sports celebrity] for the kids, but I don't really enjoy this aspect of it. I know it's a byproduct of it. I know a lot of people want to be famous and be a celebrity, and that was sort of an undesired consequence of everything that went on in 2010. I'm not complaining. But at my core I'm a pretty simple kid from a small town, and I've been doing this a long time. So I'm actually excited for the day when I can kind of step away from it and really just be a normal person again.

Q: You had a chance to write your autobiography and decided against it. What went into that call?

Donovan: I'm trying to do a lot less. Less is more for me. I don't want my name out there all the time. I want a much lower profile and a much easier lifestyle. I've turned down a lot of marketing opportunities and things like that. It's not of interest to me as much.

Q: Do you still want to be the guy who stayed here to build the game in the U.S. after you retire?

Donovan: That's to be determined, I guess, depending on how I feel. But I'm excited to pass the torch, for lack of a better phrase. I think sports are becoming more and more of a young man's game, anyway. The hunger to succeed is really important, and that's what a lot of young athletes have. It gets harder as you get older, because if you've sort of established yourself, you're not going to be as hungry as a kid who's 18 trying to break in. So it's different in that way.

Everybody talks about who's better, Clint [Dempsey] or Landon, all this bulls---. And I want Clint to do well. I want Clint to succeed. I'm happier probably than anybody when he's succeeding. It's good for our team. It's good for our sport. It's great for Clint. Clint's a little bit different of an animal. He still has that crazy hunger to succeed, more so than most. That's great. That's a beautiful thing. The more players we have like that, the better it's going to be.

Q: What are the goals that you still have for club and country?

Donovan: From a career standpoint, ideally, I'd like to play a couple more years and hopefully get to the World Cup, assuming I'm still enjoying it and passionate about it, and then sort of reevaluate from there and see where I want to go. That would be a perfect world as we're sitting here right now. That could change. Then from the club side about the same: Play the next couple years, this year and next year, with L.A., and then just reevaluate and see what I want to do.

Post-playing, definitely take some time off initially. If I stay in the soccer world I'd love to coach kids. I'd enjoy that. Perhaps broadcasting would be something I'd like to do. And then outside of soccer there's a lot of things. Serving people. A lot of charitable stuff, helping kids that need it.

Q: Are you at the point where you've kind of done what you wanted to do 10 years ago. Are you at the point where you've ticked the boxes in your plan?

Donovan: In the original plan, yeah. But I try to stay present. So while that's all great, it doesn't mean anything anymore. I'm trying to just be very present and live now. If I want to play another year, then I'll play another year. If I don't want to play another year, then I don't play another year. If I want to play five more years, I'll play five more years. But from when I was a little kid I've done everything I wanted to do.

​

 

[Christo]

Here are some pics of next seasons EPL kits. The Liverpool kit is amazing.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/picturegalleries/9284469/Premier-League-kits-201213-in-pictures.html?frame=2227603

Arsenal Chelsea

Liverpool

ManU

Newcastle I hope that's the away.

Norwich

Stoke Nachos!

Swansea

Wigan