andy_b
Footballguy
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***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (5 Viewers)
- Thread starter jpeace121
- Start date
Mjolnirs
Footballguy
I know we're all focused on the World Cup, but anyone notice we are down to the final 16 in the US Open Cup? This is the round the MLS teams come in on.
NY Red Bulls v Harrisburg City Islanders
DC United v Richmond Kickers
Chicago Fire v Charleston Battery
Columbus Crew v Rochester Rhinos
LA Galaxy v AC St. Louis
Houston Dynamo v Miami FC
Chivas USA v Austin Aztex
Seattle Sounders v Portland Timbers
On another note, the Dazed and Confused season kicks off tonight. We play at 6:30 when the temps are supposed to have dropped to around 92.
NY Red Bulls v Harrisburg City Islanders
DC United v Richmond Kickers
Chicago Fire v Charleston Battery
Columbus Crew v Rochester Rhinos
LA Galaxy v AC St. Louis
Houston Dynamo v Miami FC
Chivas USA v Austin Aztex
Seattle Sounders v Portland Timbers
On another note, the Dazed and Confused season kicks off tonight. We play at 6:30 when the temps are supposed to have dropped to around 92.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
at this thread being at 366 pages after several years of posting, and the World Cup thread at 139 after a month.
eagles2007
Footballguy
Union home opener Sunday. Still looking for tickets.
FYI: Vuvezela's have been banned from PPL Park.
FYI: Vuvezela's have been banned from PPL Park.
Masked Vigilante
Footballguy
La Liga/EPL Fans:
Do you have a favorite team? How did you choose to follow this team? Or do you just root for certain players as opposed to a team? What's the correct protocol in choosing a favorite team?
Do you have a favorite team? How did you choose to follow this team? Or do you just root for certain players as opposed to a team? What's the correct protocol in choosing a favorite team?
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Steve Tasker has a post somewhere in here that he updates with members' favorite teams.La Liga/EPL Fanso you have a favorite team? How did you choose to follow this team? Or do you just root for certain players as opposed to a team? What's the correct protocol in choosing a favorite team?
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
La Liga/EPL Fans
Arsenal fan here, no team in La Liga, but I've been doing my research and watching more games in an effort to pick a team.I became an Arsenal fan years ago because my absolute favorite player was Thierry Henry. The more I watched, the more I became a fan of the team and not just him.I think the best thing to do is really to just watch the games - you'll start to pick up on players who you like to watch, and in turn, which teams you find exciting. With multiple games televised in the US every weekend, you get to see a lot of different teams. I know that Bentley and Derek figured out their favorite teams that way - just watched some games, got a feel for some of the teams, and picked out which ones they like the most.Some posters, like Z Machine and Desert Power, actually lived abroad in Spain, and picked up their teams that way.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Yeah, it's in my sig - "Fans Link"Steve Tasker has a post somewhere in here that he updates with members' favorite teams.La Liga/EPL Fans
Update MLS for me with Chicago. I've now been out to see them and had a good time. Definitely going backYeah, it's in my sig - "Fans Link"Steve Tasker has a post somewhere in here that he updates with members' favorite teams.La Liga/EPL Fans
Masked Vigilante
Footballguy
Very cool. Thanks!
Major
Footballguy
I remember only a few weeks ago Tasker debating the merit of a separate thread for the World Cup. Suffice to say, it seems like a pretty good idea.
BTW, posted this before, anyone know where I can get a Dempsey Fulham jersey? I've had no luck thus far.
The Kansas Comet
Footballguy
I became a fan of FC Barcelona while living in Spain. I was living in Sevilla and knew nothing about La Liga. Second day there, a Barça match was on tv and I was taken by their flowing, attacking style. It was really cool to see the game played that way. I was hooked. I went to a number of Sevilla matches and I like to see them do well, but Barça already had their hooks in me.La Liga/EPL Fans
Major
Footballguy
In the Premiership, my favorite teams are currently Manchester United and Chelsea. In La Liga, I'm a big Real Madrid and Barca fan.La Liga/EPL Fans
Bonzai
Footballguy
Does not compute.In the Premiership, my favorite teams are currently Manchester United and Chelsea. In La Liga, I'm a big Real Madrid and Barca fan.La Liga/EPL Fans
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
I went to a Fire/Houston game at Toyota Park last June, it was definitely a good scene. Do they still light a bunch of flares in the fan section behind that one net during the second half? I took this pic of it - apologies for the ####ty quality, my camera sucks.IIRC, I spent all of warmups taking blurry pictures of Brian McBride and Stuart Holden, and explaining to my friends how sick Holden was. Holden scored within the first 5 minutes, and then the game ended 1-0
ExactlyDoes not compute.In the Premiership, my favorite teams are currently Manchester United and Chelsea. In La Liga, I'm a big Real Madrid and Barca fan.La Liga/EPL Fans
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Some other high quality, professional caliber pictures...McBride looking stoic, Holden at kickoff.I went to a Fire/Houston game at Toyota Park last June, it was definitely a good scene. Do they still light a bunch of flares in the fan section behind that one net during the second half? I took this pic of it - apologies for the ####ty quality, my camera sucks.IIRC, I spent all of warmups taking blurry pictures of Brian McBride and Stuart Holden, and explaining to my friends how sick Holden was. Holden scored within the first 5 minutes, and then the game ended 1-0
Major
Footballguy
why not? I've been a fan of these teams since the start. In the NBA, I'm a big supporter of LA and Boston.Does not compute.In the Premiership, my favorite teams are currently Manchester United and Chelsea. In La Liga, I'm a big Real Madrid and Barca fan.La Liga/EPL Fans
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Yep. I went to see them play Milan Memorial Day weekend and they lit it up. Also had a guy run onto the pitch and bow down to Ronaldinho.I went to a Fire/Houston game at Toyota Park last June, it was definitely a good scene. Do they still light a bunch of flares in the fan section behind that one net during the second half? I took this pic of it - apologies for the ####ty quality, my camera sucks.IIRC, I spent all of warmups taking blurry pictures of Brian McBride and Stuart Holden, and explaining to my friends how sick Holden was. Holden scored within the first 5 minutes, and then the game ended 1-0
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Well, they are pretty big rivals....who do you cheer for in El Clasico?why not? In the NBA, I'm a big supporter of LA and Boston.Does not compute.In the Premiership, my favorite teams are currently Manchester United and Chelsea. In La Liga, I'm a big Real Madrid and Barca fan.La Liga/EPL Fans
Major
Footballguy
sarcasm guys...sure you have friends that only support winning teams....I'm a big Tottenham fanWell, they are pretty big rivals....who do you cheer for in El Clasico?why not? In the NBA, I'm a big supporter of LA and Boston.Does not compute.In the Premiership, my favorite teams are currently Manchester United and Chelsea. In La Liga, I'm a big Real Madrid and Barca fan.La Liga/EPL Fans
Eephus
Footballguy
Don't do as I did.For England, I wanted to pick a London-based team so I could catch a game when I'm there on business. I didn't want to be a glory hound and choose one of the megaclubs. Wimbledon FC met those criteria along with having a nice shirt, an underdog's mentality, a bunch of likable players (Robbie Earle, Efan Ekoku, Vinnie Jones) and some top tier success. How was I to know they'd end up being the only team in English football history to get moved away from their historical location. The controversy and decline surrounding the move sucked the life out of the team. They dropped three levels from the Premiership and became a hated team throughout England. I've never bonded with another English team since the Wimbledon move. I went to a game at White Hart Lane but Spurs don't suit me. I'm a Facebook supporter of AFC Wimbledon, a fan-owned who sprang up in SW19 after the Franchise FC debacle. But it's hard to follow the Conference.For La Liga, I followed Real Betis for a while but they've been relegated too. I think the political significance of Athletic Bilbao is pretty cool but it has some definite racist and xenophobic overtones as well.My son has picked Chelsea and Barca, which is the easy thing to do but probably less likely to end in disappointment.La Liga/EPL Fans
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
This is pretty much my criteria for picking a Spanish team.....
Bonzai
Footballguy
I became a fan of United as a kid in the early 90s. They were one of the 7 or 8 teams that you could see on TV here in the states. As a I got older and more knowledgeable, I realized that there is a bit of shame in supporting a club like United as they've been so successful. So I played around with supporting other clubs. I eventually came back to them, but then along came Ronaldo (who I simply can't stand), and I again struggled to support them. Since they've sold him, I'm as big a fan as I've ever been. Even though I do feel a little guilty about supporting such a celebrated club, I just can't help but root for them anymore.
scoobygang
Footballguy
I narrowed it down to Newcastle and Spurs when I was in England in 94. I chose Newcastle because I liked the beer and they were the sponsors at the time. When I got back in the game 5 years ago I also started following Arsenal because I liked watching them play. I actualy enjoy not being quite as invested in a soccer team. I root for players or for entertaining games. I have no problem enjoying Barca and Real as long as they're both playing well.
Mjolnirs
Footballguy
Bundesliga fan here. That's the league in Germany by the way. I've always been a fan of all things German, it's part of my heritage. During WC 90 and 94 while watching the German team play I became a fan of Jürgen Klinsmann. When I first got hooked up to the internet in the mid 90s I did a search on his name and discovered the Bundesliga and Bayern München the team he was playing for and have been a fan ever since.
That should make Desert Power's head spin.
Desert_Power
Footballguy
Copied from the other thread:
Desert_Power
Footballguy
eagles2007
Footballguy
i should know the answer to this, but i'm drawing a blank:
golden goal or full 30 in OT?
golden goal or full 30 in OT?
Pope Benedict XVI Fan
Footballguy
The UNICEF arrangement is a very nice gesture and should be applauded (also Aston Villa have a similar deal with the children's charity Acorn). However it is pretty hypocritical in my eyes considering they have a partnership with the Bunyodkor in Uzbekistan, a government backed club in a country with an appalling human rights record.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Going to cross-post this to potentially convert some new Gunners....
Steve Tasker said:
eagles2007
Footballguy
loved man city a couple of years ago, i thought they were very exciting to watch. kind of switched to everton because a friend is a fan so its fun to talk about.
in italy, i like udinese and roma. in germany, dortmund.
can't really explain why i am a fan of any of them other than to say i watched them once or twice and really liked to watch them.
if i had to pick a spanish team, i'd say Valencia (i think its valencia; whoever wears all yellow).
in italy, i like udinese and roma. in germany, dortmund.
can't really explain why i am a fan of any of them other than to say i watched them once or twice and really liked to watch them.
if i had to pick a spanish team, i'd say Valencia (i think its valencia; whoever wears all yellow).
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
So what is good for Mexican league coverage in the US?
I'm moving into a new apartment, and the cable coverage will have Univision and Telemundo, which my current cable coverage doesn't include. There will be at least some coverage on these channels, right? I'd love to start watching some of the Mexican league, but it's never on TV here at the moment.
I'm moving into a new apartment, and the cable coverage will have Univision and Telemundo, which my current cable coverage doesn't include. There will be at least some coverage on these channels, right? I'd love to start watching some of the Mexican league, but it's never on TV here at the moment.
The Z Machine
Footballguy
Mexican league soccer kind of sucks honestly.Get GolTV and ESPN Deported if you want good coverage of some other leagues.
Desert_Power
Footballguy
Caught the end of the Sounders-Union game tonight. Impressed with the quality of the play. May have to start watching more games.
massraider
Footballguy
Ha. Probably an old joke, but I never saw that before.
Native
Footballguy
NATIVES CHELSEA STORY:
I started following Chelsea during the 1999-2000 season. At that time they were considered a second-tier English team - good enough to rank in the top-half dozen teams in England but never good enough to compete for the EPL trophy. As such, they would qualify for the Champions League every few years, but they would never a real threat to win. These were my reasons for picking them:
1) A team with the moxie to qualify for the Champions League but by no means a bandwagon pick. Man United and Arsenal were the trendy picks at the time. As it turns out, that season they pushed Spanish Giants Barcelona to the brink of elimination in a pulsating quarterfinal (?) match. Even though they had never won in Europe, I was glad their name was in the conversation when discussing good European club teams. I didnt want to pick a dud of a team as the attraction of Champions League soccer was too much to ignore. I root for enough sucky teams here in the US.
2) London based team, in case I ever visited London
3) Diverse, intercontinental squad with players from a number of nationalities. Some people criticized Chelsea for leaning to heavily on international stars back then, but I always thought it was cool for an English team to have as many internationals as the top Spanish and Italian sides. This is commonplace today, but it wasnt back then. Case in point- Chelsea's Italian playmaker GIanfranco Zola was probably the most stylish, talented and inspirational player in England at the time.
4) Cheslea just signed Liberian international George Weah on loan, who was widely considered one of the best players in the world at the time. As a newbie, it was easy to pull for a legitimate soccer superstar. As it turns out, he was only on Chelsea for a single season but it was enough.
5) Cool, blue uniforms
That summer, they signed Jimmy Floyd Hasslebaink, who quickly became one of my favorite players and was tenacious in front of goal (even if he was a bit selfish)
Today, Chelsea are owned by Roman Abramovich, a Russian Billionaire who has spent a ton of money to bring the best talent in the world to Stamford Bridge. At first some teams begrudged Chelsea as it won several EPL titles after Abromiovich arrived and would regularly advance deep into the Champions League (Though we still never won). At the end of the day, though, the majority of teams still view Chelsea as the lesser of two evils when compared to Manchester United - the other mega-power in English football. Chelsea have a great following and still have not climbed to the pinnacle of world Football as the Champions League title still eludes them. They are beginning to return to a philosophy based on more open, offensive-minded football under Carlos Ancelotti - in fact, they broke the all time goal scoring mark for a single season this past year as they recaptured the EPL title from Man Utd. They also have one of the best youth sides in the world with a ton of new talent coming through the ranks.
Anyway, for those of you looking to select a club, Id recommend picking a team that has at least a reasonable chance of securing Champions League Football. Its too much fun to pass up and makes all of European football more interesting and relevant.
I started following Chelsea during the 1999-2000 season. At that time they were considered a second-tier English team - good enough to rank in the top-half dozen teams in England but never good enough to compete for the EPL trophy. As such, they would qualify for the Champions League every few years, but they would never a real threat to win. These were my reasons for picking them:
1) A team with the moxie to qualify for the Champions League but by no means a bandwagon pick. Man United and Arsenal were the trendy picks at the time. As it turns out, that season they pushed Spanish Giants Barcelona to the brink of elimination in a pulsating quarterfinal (?) match. Even though they had never won in Europe, I was glad their name was in the conversation when discussing good European club teams. I didnt want to pick a dud of a team as the attraction of Champions League soccer was too much to ignore. I root for enough sucky teams here in the US.
2) London based team, in case I ever visited London
3) Diverse, intercontinental squad with players from a number of nationalities. Some people criticized Chelsea for leaning to heavily on international stars back then, but I always thought it was cool for an English team to have as many internationals as the top Spanish and Italian sides. This is commonplace today, but it wasnt back then. Case in point- Chelsea's Italian playmaker GIanfranco Zola was probably the most stylish, talented and inspirational player in England at the time.
4) Cheslea just signed Liberian international George Weah on loan, who was widely considered one of the best players in the world at the time. As a newbie, it was easy to pull for a legitimate soccer superstar. As it turns out, he was only on Chelsea for a single season but it was enough.
5) Cool, blue uniforms
That summer, they signed Jimmy Floyd Hasslebaink, who quickly became one of my favorite players and was tenacious in front of goal (even if he was a bit selfish)
Today, Chelsea are owned by Roman Abramovich, a Russian Billionaire who has spent a ton of money to bring the best talent in the world to Stamford Bridge. At first some teams begrudged Chelsea as it won several EPL titles after Abromiovich arrived and would regularly advance deep into the Champions League (Though we still never won). At the end of the day, though, the majority of teams still view Chelsea as the lesser of two evils when compared to Manchester United - the other mega-power in English football. Chelsea have a great following and still have not climbed to the pinnacle of world Football as the Champions League title still eludes them. They are beginning to return to a philosophy based on more open, offensive-minded football under Carlos Ancelotti - in fact, they broke the all time goal scoring mark for a single season this past year as they recaptured the EPL title from Man Utd. They also have one of the best youth sides in the world with a ton of new talent coming through the ranks.
Anyway, for those of you looking to select a club, Id recommend picking a team that has at least a reasonable chance of securing Champions League Football. Its too much fun to pass up and makes all of European football more interesting and relevant.
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Steve Tasker
Footballguy
I don't really care if the league sucks. I mean, I watch MLS every time I see it on TV.
Will there be any games on Univision and Telemundo though? GolTV isn't part of the package, but ESPN Deportes might be. I'm not going to be paying for any extra #### though - the cable has FSC, ESPN/ESPN2, etc. It's the exact same cable as I have now, except I'll be moving from the suburbs to within the city limits, which apparently gives us Telemundo and Univision.
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The Kansas Comet
Footballguy
That's Villarreal - the Yellow Submarines.
eagles2007
Footballguy
thanks. i don't watch very much la liga at all. just nice to root against someone other than the big powers.
LHUCKS
Footballguy
The quality of play IMHO, definitely exceeds the Mexican leagues and the South American leagues IMHO.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Injury-marred game tonight for us. Lost 2-1 @ a team that was 1 point ahead of us for the season.
First half - we had a guy go down early on a somewhat dirty clip from behind that messed up his knee. We walked him off, but he didn't play again. Right before the end of the half, one of our guys went through a challenge on one of their players - he won the ball and followed through the guy's leg...which broke, we believe. Ambulance called, guy stretchered off, half ends.
Second half - we're down 2-1, one of our wingers makes a run into the 18. Ball is played to him kinda long. It nears the touchline, roughly halfway between the 18 and the 6, so maybe 12 yards to the right of goal. Their GK inexplicably hesitates, even though he should've gotten there easily. He goes in feet-first instead of headfirst for some reason, and collides with our onrushing winger....and their GK got ####ed up. A few screams, followed by "OH MY GOD MY LEG IS BROKEN". Turns out the bone was sticking out of his leg. Ambulance #2 called, they have to set his broken leg as he's lying on the field, which results in a bunch of excruciating screams. It took them several tries to even get him on the stretcher, and he was obviously in ridiculous agony.
Just terrible - both honest challenges, just gone horribly wrong. The other team recognized that they were clean 50/50 challenges, they didn't try to retaliate or anything. We all felt horrible.
First half - we had a guy go down early on a somewhat dirty clip from behind that messed up his knee. We walked him off, but he didn't play again. Right before the end of the half, one of our guys went through a challenge on one of their players - he won the ball and followed through the guy's leg...which broke, we believe. Ambulance called, guy stretchered off, half ends.
Second half - we're down 2-1, one of our wingers makes a run into the 18. Ball is played to him kinda long. It nears the touchline, roughly halfway between the 18 and the 6, so maybe 12 yards to the right of goal. Their GK inexplicably hesitates, even though he should've gotten there easily. He goes in feet-first instead of headfirst for some reason, and collides with our onrushing winger....and their GK got ####ed up. A few screams, followed by "OH MY GOD MY LEG IS BROKEN". Turns out the bone was sticking out of his leg. Ambulance #2 called, they have to set his broken leg as he's lying on the field, which results in a bunch of excruciating screams. It took them several tries to even get him on the stretcher, and he was obviously in ridiculous agony.
Just terrible - both honest challenges, just gone horribly wrong. The other team recognized that they were clean 50/50 challenges, they didn't try to retaliate or anything. We all felt horrible.
The Z Machine
Footballguy
Ugh. Sickening story there Tasker. Sorry to hear that.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
It was brutal....I mean, injuries are going to happen, it's a violent sport with a bunch of grown men throwing their full weight around - you know the risks when you step on the field. But the last thing anyone wants is someone to get hurt. We all have day jobs and families to go home to at the end of the day.I'm surprised that injuries don't happen more, to be honest - most players in our league are pretty experienced and in good enough shape, which minimizes injuries. I stayed and watched the first 20 or so minutes of the next game, which was a "recreational league", mostly comprised of guys in their 40s and 50s with full-on beer guts and all that. The game was just crazy physical - I guess that when you start to lose fitness, you probably don't control your body as well, and it just leads to more physicality.Really ruined the game for everyone involved.....neither team really wanted to play too much after that - thankfully there were only 10 minutes left.
The Kansas Comet
Footballguy
No problem. They're a pretty good club. They actually own Altidore's contract. They have one player, Joan Capdevila, on the Spanish national team, and Nilmar is a forward for Brazil.
andy_b
Footballguy
From Goff
Gulati, Bradley to discuss coaching job in 2 weeks
U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati said Monday morning that he and Bob Bradley will meet after the World Cup in about two weeks to discuss Bradley's future as national team coach.
"I will sit down with Bob and we will talk about the goods and the bads of the tournament and of the four years," Gulati said. "That is the appropriate thing. I want to hear his views, express some of mine and see what makes sense. I think he has done a very good job, that is very clear."
Whether Bradley wants to return, "He may want a different challenge -- I don't know," Gulati said.
Bradley's contract expires in December.
The Ghana result was an "opportunity missed," Gulati said. "It was a game we could've won and probably feel we should've won."
Will the coaching situation be settled before the Aug. 10 friendly against Brazil at the Meadowlands? "I'm not sure," Gulati said.
Gulati, Bradley to discuss coaching job in 2 weeks
U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati said Monday morning that he and Bob Bradley will meet after the World Cup in about two weeks to discuss Bradley's future as national team coach.
"I will sit down with Bob and we will talk about the goods and the bads of the tournament and of the four years," Gulati said. "That is the appropriate thing. I want to hear his views, express some of mine and see what makes sense. I think he has done a very good job, that is very clear."
Whether Bradley wants to return, "He may want a different challenge -- I don't know," Gulati said.
Bradley's contract expires in December.
The Ghana result was an "opportunity missed," Gulati said. "It was a game we could've won and probably feel we should've won."
Will the coaching situation be settled before the Aug. 10 friendly against Brazil at the Meadowlands? "I'm not sure," Gulati said.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
What are your guys' thoughts on Donovan possibly moving to Man City? I can't help but think it's a bad idea, just like I thought (a) Gooch to Milan and (b) Adu to Benfica were awful ideas.I posted this in a different thread but felt it might generate more discussion here:
I could be wrong here, and I'm willing to explore other thoughts - I realize some of those guys could be transferred/loaned out - but I can't help but think this isn't going to be as good a move as it sounds on paper. City have a packed midfield.Steve Tasker said:
Mjolnirs
Footballguy
Had a game tonight in a downpour. It was thundering in the distance and of course the t-ball game on the adjacent field was called. We kept playing. It started a light rain in the first half, but the wind was blowing that rain at a sharp angle. About 5 minutes before halftime it started pouring with the wind still blowing. The lights were turned on because of the dark clouds, but right as we started the second half the power went out. We kept playing.
The ref called the game about 5 minutes in because he was afraid of injures. It is a Y field therefore not a great pitch.
What a blast. Everyone was drenched it was still pouring and pretty much coming down sideways, but everyone wanted to keep playing. Of course we were thrilled to not be playing in 95+ temps like last week.
A win last week 4-1 and a shortened loss 3-0 tonight. 1-1 is a good start to the summer season. Game 3 tomorrow night.
The ref called the game about 5 minutes in because he was afraid of injures. It is a Y field therefore not a great pitch.
What a blast. Everyone was drenched it was still pouring and pretty much coming down sideways, but everyone wanted to keep playing. Of course we were thrilled to not be playing in 95+ temps like last week.
A win last week 4-1 and a shortened loss 3-0 tonight. 1-1 is a good start to the summer season. Game 3 tomorrow night.
Steve Tasker
Footballguy
Had a game tonight and then again tomorrow night?
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