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I don't see them having any trouble qualifying for the CL in the top 4. Manchester United either. I'll be shocked if one of those two finishes 5th....it's going to be one of Liverpool, Arsenal, City finishing 5th, I think.I'm still not sold on Liverpool being good enough to just cruise through the season and make the top 4, although they'll probably qualify.
Interestingly, Essien didnt start today for the first time since he came back from injury in Feb. Wonder whats going on there. Truth be told, hes not the best fit for the diamond (although he really could play anywhere on the field). Hes my favorite player to watch so I hope this doesnt become a trend, but I can see him splitting more time with Ballack moving forward.
I agree totally.
Hey guys- I can only spot-check in these days- hoping to fire off a few posts, but thought I'd start here in the way-back machine..Overrated? He's getting some buzz with his play- but I wouldn't really say that's "rating" him enough to qualify for being "over"-rated.
I was just thinking about this as I watched Eto'o's Inter play against Bari today. In terms of pure strikers, I'd take Ibrahimavic.
I dislocated mine in college (fortunately in off-season scrimmage). Hurt less than just felt weird- when I took the shoe off... whoa! The toe was turned around with the nail pointing down... freaked the #### out of me. Trainers popped it right back around and it hurt a little more- but only for a couple of days.What makes you think you dislocated it vs breaking/jamming/etc?
It felt like it was dislocating or "popping" a couple other times after it initially happened. I'm guessing if I broke it, it would hurt a hell of a lot more, maybe a sharper pain. I could have just jammed it also (that's what happened to my other big toe tonight as I was reaching to clear a ball and toe-balled the damn thing, big time) but the popping feeling was what made me think it was a dislocation. We'll see what it looks/feels like in the morning. Yeah, we don't have trainers for our over-35, rec league so no luck getting an official diagnosis on the field.
yeah, I've been following and posting on this saga all summer long.This is really an interesting story, and perhaps the new way soccer is going to run in England. Everton is not a big money club and Lescott is a good player. A big money club comes along and dangles a salary double what a small money club is paying. Small money club refuses to let him leave, but player refuses to stay. Opening game in Everton was a huge public cry for Lescott to stay. Lescott refused to train with club. Can you really blame him? Kind of a bad deal all around really.
City has spent an astronomical sum of money this offseasonTevez
FWIW- there was an article on ESPN.com a year or so ago about a kid in our youth system... the son of former pro- who was looking like the next "guy"- wish I could remember his name. I caught him play v Brasil for the u15s (maybe?) on TV- tallish, quick and fast and very attack minded. Seemed to have caught the attention of Brasil- they consistently collapsed 2 or 3 defenders on him whenever he got near the ball and he still tried to attack them with ball at feet. Anybody know this kid's name? I watched part of that game and immediately started thinking about LD and Adu as youth players when I watched him.Oh... Ramos- andy, you know I
that guy- definitely my favorite MNT player ever. But I'd say he developed into a true pro after going to S America to play pro (Chile or Peru, IIRC). But he always had the intangibles (speed, quickness, skills, vision), even as a youth/college player.
I am not sure if I have a single favorite player but Ramos would be right up there.And I agree with your opinion of developing into a true pro much later. That was a by product of the times. Today a player of his talent would have been in MLS by 16-17 years old.Ramos himself though I don't think ever played in South America. He did play in Spain and in Mexico but never in South America that I can remember but maybe he trained there...Oh... Ramos- andy, you know Ithat guy- definitely my favorite MNT player ever. But I'd say he developed into a true pro after going to S America to play pro (Chile or Peru, IIRC). But he always had the intangibles (speed, quickness, skills, vision), even as a youth/college player.
I am drawing a blank.Here is the current U17 and U15 player pools in case it rings any bells
Not sure if it's the kid you're talking about, but I've heard great, great, things about Jack McInerney. I don't remember where, though.
2-0 Villa at Anfield
Well, looks like I won't have to waste two hours watching this on the DVR when I get home.
You're obviously talking about Marvel Wynne.
First impressions:Holy ####....(a) there are a lot of overbearing parents out there. Jesus ####### Christ. And (b) there's a lot of politics involvedWithin 2 minutes of the tryouts, we had a parent tell us which 4 players we weren't allowed to pick because they were good enough to play up in the U10s (despite being 9 years old and eligible for our team) with his son. This guy's not a coach...he's a parent, roaming around on the field telling us what to do. At the end of the day, 2 parents came onto the field to plead their cases on why their kids should be on the team. "I know Jimmy didn't play well in the 4v4's but I swear he's a great player" and all that. Lobbying for their kid to be on the team.On top of that, there's a whole lot of politics going on. The "coach" let me make a lot of the personnel decisions, but he told me which players we had to take "Yeah, he's not too good, but his mother's on the board so we have to take him", stuff like that. He acknowledged that it wasn't right, but it's just part of the system. There's a ####load of gossip too...I heard a ton of stuff about parents and kids that I never wanted to know. It's all a part of the game - be in the "in"-crowd and your kid is set for years.Luckily for me, the coach is a pretty cool guy. Probably in his late 30s, seems to have a decent soccer mind and played when he was younger. As soon as we met, he said "here, I'll scout the kids, you scout the moms. If we have kids who are on the fence at the end of the day, we'll pick based on who has the hottest mother"
at the whole thing. Sweet jeebus.
I don't think Marvel Wynne is still 15 or 16... just a guess.
Outside of Ronaldo, Ferdinand and Vidic, United didn't show me much last year... not a fan of what I've seen on the field this year. Liverpool just got beat by AV... they're looking really gappy through the MF- Lucas = meh. Arsenal... gotta love what they've done so far, and I've always liked the product Wenger puts on the field, but I don't see this team having the depth to sustain a full year of EPL and cup games without slipping majorly. Chelsea kinda wins by omission- although I do like their squad. Christo nails it with the "better depth" comment. They may not match the quality of the other teams' top players, but more than make up for it with the rest of the team.
I like all of those guys, but I'd put them in more of a "role player" category than "game-changers". That's a lot of money to drop on an, albeit very solid, group of role-players.edit- a VERY solid group of players... role-player might be a bit harsh.
I think it might be Stefan Jerome... but I remember this ESPN article being different, so it might be another kid.
o.k.
Chelsea came out of the blocks like gangbusters last year and looked better than I have ever seen them play, but by December everyone had figured out Scolari's tactics and they were effectively out of contention by the time Hiddink took over. I think it remains to be seen how well Ancelotti's new formation holds up - particularly against a quality opponent and good manager after everyone has had a good look at it. Also, while the EPL is always a primary goal, I think Abramovich brought Ancelotti on for one reason - to add a Champions League cup to his trophy case. I think that might become more apparent as the season plays out.
Now, I'm not going to argue that Chelsea may not have a better side this year....BUT, first of all it's been 2-3 games. Second of all, Manchester United has been without Vidic and VanderSar so far this year.
Now, back to the bolded, last year United boasted 6 of the starting 11 first team premiership players (the three you mentioned above, along with Patrice Evra, Edwin Van der Sar and Ryan Giggs).
AND throughout this conversation I have failed to mention the amazing Wayne Rooney (who battled injuries at the beginning of last year).
If United didn't show you much last year, you weren't watching the record setting clean sheet run. United may not have the overwhelming attack and offensive flow of some teams (as witnessed in the CL final vs Barcelona), but they have a tremendous defense and are very tough to beat.
I'm looking forward to seeing Ibrahimovic play now that he is in la Liga, which should be more accessible on US television. Obviously he was very impressive last season for Inter, but I never saw a single game. My recollection is that he has always been a bit of a let down for Sweden, although I remember one goal he scored against Spain in Euro '08. It seems Serie A has declined in recent years and is continuing that trend this season, so it will be interesting to see how he fairs in La Liga and in the CL.
And Chelsea seems to the top team most likely to be hurt by the African Nations Cup. Drogba, Mikel, and Essien all play for top African sides that should not only qualify, but at least advance to the quarterfinals. Chelsea has great depth among attacking midfielders and in central defense, but I'm not sure they're that deep at striker or holding midfielder, which is where those absences will be felt. If Ballack were to get hurt while Essien and Mikel are away, it's hard to guess who the holding mid would be. Maybe Sturridge is ready for prime time, or maybe Sheva still has a bit in the tank, but I'm not sold on a replacement for Drogba. If Chelsea then play a five man midfield leaving Anelka alone, you never know if he might morph back into Le Sulk.Chelsea looks great right now (although let's remember they got a bit lucky to beat Hull in the first game of the season), but I'd like to see how they do when Drogba isn't in white hot form. I do agree that it's been very gratifying seeing Anelka and Drogba play so well together. I think Man U is the favorite until they give me reason to believe otherwise.
Good stuff- big fan of Giggs (he was great last year) and Evra, both of whom I forgot about when writing that. I like Rooney too (hard not to). Not saying they weren't a good side last year- just that I was pretty uniformly underwhelmed by them, especially the MF. I thought Chelsea, let alone Liverpool or Arsenal, were consistently a better playing side (more appealing to me, an ex-MFer) last year, but failed to get the results. Full credit to United on the year, but again- they didn't show me much in terms of supposedly being one of the world's best.
yes - the damn ANC will hurt Chelsea again this year, particularly if Ivory Coast goes deep in the tournament they will miss two forwards in Drogba and Kalou. Due to the third place game, any team that makes the semi's means those players are unavailable to thier club for about a month. The fact that they hold this in a world cup year puts a tremendous strain on these players and their clubs.
For 14 seasons MLS has needed a strong team in NY and for 14 seasons, the MetroBulls have disappointed.There are multiple rumors flying right now about the franchise, ranging from the believable (a complete sweep of the organization from Agoos on down), to the unbelievable Red Bull Looking to Sell Team to FC Barcelona
That team is a disaster. Hopefully they get things straighten out for the new stadium (it really looks impresive from the train going to Newark...the shape soft of looks like the Bird's Nest in Beijing)...sadly I have my doubts. At this point, I'd welcome my new Barcelona overlords.
excellent! This is the type of start we all hoped for so that he can keep on the field.If anyone finds a link of the goal, please post...
Still looking, it was from 30 yards out. The espnsoccernet gamecast description makes it sound pretty impressive.
still going onWhen West Ham went ahead on the PK, fans stormed the field, riot police.Fans are going NUTS in the stands. The Millwall fans are chanting in reference to the guy for West Ham that was stabbed earlier this week, I don't recall his name and can't understand the chants. Going to be a long night in East London....
