***Official Soccer Discussion Thread*** (8 Viewers)

[NewlyRetired]

"It sounds stupid now but for banter I grabbed one of the poles and pretended I was doing some kind of Ninja move. I threw it into the ground behind John who, by this point, was running away and facing in the other direction. But as I did that, he did a Cruyff turn and the pole stabbed him in the leg."

-- Steven Thompson, captain of Scottish club St. Mirren, explains how he injured teammate John McGinn by throwing one of the poles players were dribbling between into McGinn's thigh. (The Scotsman)

 

[Ramsay Hunt Experience]

Good God, did Barca have some pretty goals today.

That Messi to Suarez goal was absurd. Go #### Yourself Cat is going to be working overtime today.

Just go to Deadspin. They have a story with videos.

 

[El Floppo]

Good God, did Barca have some pretty goals today.

That Messi to Suarez goal was absurd. Go #### Yourself Cat is going to be working overtime today.

Just go to Deadspin. They have a story with videos.

and starve my sense of entitlement? nein danke

 

[Dinsy Ejotuz]

That all those goals would come in one game is obscene.

#5 -- Neymar-Messi-Neymar-Xavi-Suarez -- is probably my favorite.

 

[Native]

Wigan was relegated to League 1 from Championship today. They lifted the FA Cup less than two years ago.

I forget... did they have any kind of sanctions against them? Or did they just have to sell all their players and couldn't rebound? that's a pretty catastrophic fail.

Dont think so. They just crashed and burned. They actually were relegated the same year they won the cup.

 

[Eephus]

Wigan was relegated to League 1 from Championship today. They lifted the FA Cup less than two years ago.

I forget... did they have any kind of sanctions against them? Or did they just have to sell all their players and couldn't rebound? that's a pretty catastrophic fail.

Dont think so. They just crashed and burned. They actually were relegated the same year they won the cup.

They had another FA Cup run last year beating Manchester City at the Emirates before going out vs Arsenal in the semi-finals on penalties.

 

[Native]

Just saw this on Twitter though it was posted last month -

The Premier league will have a new title sponsor from 2016-17 season. Barclays will not renew their sponsorship.

Any suggestions? The CPL (Christo Premier League)?

 

[Sebowski]

Just saw this on Twitter though it was posted last month -

The Premier league will have a new title sponsor from 2016-17 season. Barclays will not renew their sponsorship.

Any suggestions? The CPL (Christo Premier League)?

You got the letter right. Chevy, imo.

 

[Sebowski]

That all those goals would come in one game is obscene.

#5 -- Neymar-Messi-Neymar-Xavi-Suarez -- is probably my favorite.

The weekend one with the Suarez dummy may even top that when you go back to the Messi ball to Alba then Alba one touch for the dummy.

 

[charvik]

From ESPN

With Bayern Munich losing in the German Cup semis, the only clubs that can win European Trebles (Domestic League, Domestic Cup, European Cup) this season are Barcelona & Juventus. That has only been done seven times before.

13 in UEFA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treble_(association_football)#Continental_trebles

 

[NewlyRetired]

From ESPN

With Bayern Munich losing in the German Cup semis, the only clubs that can win European Trebles (Domestic League, Domestic Cup, European Cup) this season are Barcelona & Juventus. That has only been done seven times before.

13 in UEFA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treble_(association_football)#Continental_trebles

I assume the ESPN stat is equating European Cup only with the Champions Cup/Champions League, not UEFA Cup/Europa League.

That wiki page you linked shows the UEFA/Europa as part of the treble. If you move those, and the Liverpool league cup you should get the 7 from the original ESPN stat.

 

[charvik]

From ESPN

With Bayern Munich losing in the German Cup semis, the only clubs that can win European Trebles (Domestic League, Domestic Cup, European Cup) this season are Barcelona & Juventus. That has only been done seven times before.

13 in UEFA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treble_(association_football)#Continental_trebles

I assume the ESPN stat is equating European Cup only with the Champions Cup/Champions League, not UEFA Cup/Europa League.

That wiki page you linked shows the UEFA/Europa as part of the treble. If you move those, and the Liverpool league cup you should get the 7 from the original ESPN stat.

or, ESPN could just suck it and use the same stats as everybody else...

 

[NewlyRetired]

From ESPN

With Bayern Munich losing in the German Cup semis, the only clubs that can win European Trebles (Domestic League, Domestic Cup, European Cup) this season are Barcelona & Juventus. That has only been done seven times before.

13 in UEFA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treble_(association_football)#Continental_trebles

I assume the ESPN stat is equating European Cup only with the Champions Cup/Champions League, not UEFA Cup/Europa League.That wiki page you linked shows the UEFA/Europa as part of the treble. If you move those, and the Liverpool league cup you should get the 7 from the original ESPN stat.

or, ESPN could just suck it and use the same stats as everybody else...

I personally prefer ESPN's definition. I could not care less who wins a league cup seeing as the teams who play in it barely care.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

From ESPN

With Bayern Munich losing in the German Cup semis, the only clubs that can win European Trebles (Domestic League, Domestic Cup, European Cup) this season are Barcelona & Juventus. That has only been done seven times before.

13 in UEFA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treble_(association_football)#Continental_trebles

I assume the ESPN stat is equating European Cup only with the Champions Cup/Champions League, not UEFA Cup/Europa League.That wiki page you linked shows the UEFA/Europa as part of the treble. If you move those, and the Liverpool league cup you should get the 7 from the original ESPN stat.

or, ESPN could just suck it and use the same stats as everybody else...

"Everybody else" includes the crap cups in the term "treble"? I don't think so. I know there's no set definition, but I think the most common usage is the domestic league cup, the top domestic tournament cup and the top European tournament cup. I've heard of the "domestic treble" which usually involves the league cup and two other competitions, one of which is typically the lesser cup.

 

[NewlyRetired]

Can any of you NY residents comment on this? It regards NYCFC kicking the tires on the Columbia Athletic Complex to build.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/29/sports/soccer/new-york-city-fc-searching-for-stadium-site-is-considering-columbia-athletic-complex.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0

 

[Mjolnirs]

ugh, what a way to go out.

Bayern dominated early, but seemed to let up once up 1-0. The ref missed a handball that should have been a PK, but

with their play in the second half, Dortmund deserved the equalizer.

The penalties were a mess. Lahm and Alanso both slipping just blows my mind. Follow that with a save against Goetze and Neuer hitting the post, that had to be the worst set of pks I've ever seen.

Also, the Robben injury is a great concern. Hopefully he pulled himself out of caution.

 

[charvik]

From ESPN

With Bayern Munich losing in the German Cup semis, the only clubs that can win European Trebles (Domestic League, Domestic Cup, European Cup) this season are Barcelona & Juventus. That has only been done seven times before.

13 in UEFA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treble_(association_football)#Continental_trebles

I assume the ESPN stat is equating European Cup only with the Champions Cup/Champions League, not UEFA Cup/Europa League.That wiki page you linked shows the UEFA/Europa as part of the treble. If you move those, and the Liverpool league cup you should get the 7 from the original ESPN stat.

or, ESPN could just suck it and use the same stats as everybody else...

"Everybody else" includes the crap cups in the term "treble"? I don't think so. I know there's no set definition, but I think the most common usage is the domestic league cup, the top domestic tournament cup and the top European tournament cup. I've heard of the "domestic treble" which usually involves the league cup and two other competitions, one of which is typically the lesser cup.

Well, we can argue semantics all night long, but I've heard it defined that way my whole life. I don't really care one way or the other.

 

[charvik]

On a lighter note, Klopp or De Boer?

or rafa...

 

[El Floppo]

Can any of you NY residents comment on this? It regards NYCFC kicking the tires on the Columbia Athletic Complex to build.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/29/sports/soccer/new-york-city-fc-searching-for-stadium-site-is-considering-columbia-athletic-complex.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0

hah... you mean me. (nice to see my old field- to the left in the photo- even if it's been made into turf-grass instead of the great grass we used to have)

there's no parking up there. parking for CU football games is tight (from what I understand)- can't imagine the mayhem for this. they'd have to invest in some massive parking lots too. but there are 2 subway lines that go nearby, one of which continues up into the Bronx. not much in the way of bars/restaurants up there either... but it would provide the opportunity for growth. it would definitely make for a pretty location. from an alum standpoint, I'd be worried about the rest of the complex with drunk supporters having to walk through most of it to get to the stadium. It would be really cool for CU to get to probably regularly play against them. But I also wonder where they'd practice, especially during a very full fall season with Football and mens/women's soccer needing practice space. football used the field right next to the soccer stadium while men and women shared the soccer field (actually- in my time, the women got forced down to the baseball field... but those were the halcyon misogyny days of the late 80s).

I know when NYC2 was first being considered, I spent time looking around and thought of Baker field as a short term option. There are some rail-yards nearby that I considered as well. the 25k stadium on a pier would be amazing (it's also down the street about a mile from me) but immediate locals were horrified by the idea as were environmentalists. There's an area way down on the Lower East Side at the river that has piers that I considered, but would involve some crazy squeezing. otherwise, that was about it for Manhattan other than some Moses style eminent domain stuff up in Harlem (and the way Harlem has been developed in the last 15 years, I doubt there's the real-estate for it).

 

[The Z Machine]

Lots of reports that both Real and Atlético are going to get a 2 window transfer ban handed down from fifa for the same academy stuff that got Barça their ban.

Ugh. Obviously this will affect Atleti more than the other 2 due to not having the funds to bankroll transfers before the ban goes into effect. That's how Barça did it, right?

 

[NewlyRetired]

Can any of you NY residents comment on this? It regards NYCFC kicking the tires on the Columbia Athletic Complex to build.http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/29/sports/soccer/new-york-city-fc-searching-for-stadium-site-is-considering-columbia-athletic-complex.html?smid=tw-share&_r=0

hah... you mean me. (nice to see my old field- to the left in the photo- even if it's been made into turf-grass instead of the great grass we used to have)

there's no parking up there. parking for CU football games is tight (from what I understand)- can't imagine the mayhem for this. they'd have to invest in some massive parking lots too. but there are 2 subway lines that go nearby, one of which continues up into the Bronx. not much in the way of bars/restaurants up there either... but it would provide the opportunity for growth. it would definitely make for a pretty location. from an alum standpoint, I'd be worried about the rest of the complex with drunk supporters having to walk through most of it to get to the stadium. It would be really cool for CU to get to probably regularly play against them. But I also wonder where they'd practice, especially during a very full fall season with Football and mens/women's soccer needing practice space. football used the field right next to the soccer stadium while men and women shared the soccer field (actually- in my time, the women got forced down to the baseball field... but those were the halcyon misogyny days of the late 80s).

I know when NYC2 was first being considered, I spent time looking around and thought of Baker field as a short term option. There are some rail-yards nearby that I considered as well. the 25k stadium on a pier would be amazing (it's also down the street about a mile from me) but immediate locals were horrified by the idea as were environmentalists. There's an area way down on the Lower East Side at the river that has piers that I considered, but would involve some crazy squeezing. otherwise, that was about it for Manhattan other than some Moses style eminent domain stuff up in Harlem (and the way Harlem has been developed in the last 15 years, I doubt there's the real-estate for it).

Thank you for the info.

I guess they don't have to practice here. They could build a training facility elsewhere. Many teams in MLS have built training centers that are away from their stadiums, especially the stadiums that are located in cities.

Right now NYCFC train at Manhattenville Colłege but they probably will build a real training center like Red Bull did eventually to house their academy.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

On a lighter note, Klopp or De Boer?

or rafa...

The English league could use some tactical innovation amoung its managers, so I say Klopp. Don't know much about de Boer as a manager. Rafa would be a huge disappointment.

 

[CletiusMaximus]

ugh, what a way to go out.

Bayern dominated early, but seemed to let up once up 1-0. The ref missed a handball that should have been a PK, but

with their play in the second half, Dortmund deserved the equalizer.

The penalties were a mess. Lahm and Alanso both slipping just blows my mind. Follow that with a save against Goetze and Neuer hitting the post, that had to be the worst set of pks I've ever seen.

Also, the Robben injury is a great concern. Hopefully he pulled himself out of caution.

It looks like Robben is out for the remainder of the season. Lewandowski broke his jaw and got a concussion late in the game. Terrible luck this season for Bayern, and bad news for neutral fans looking forward to the Champions Leage semis.

 

[El Floppo]

ugh, what a way to go out.

Bayern dominated early, but seemed to let up once up 1-0. The ref missed a handball that should have been a PK, but

with their play in the second half, Dortmund deserved the equalizer.

The penalties were a mess. Lahm and Alanso both slipping just blows my mind. Follow that with a save against Goetze and Neuer hitting the post, that had to be the worst set of pks I've ever seen.

Also, the Robben injury is a great concern. Hopefully he pulled himself out of caution.

It looks like Robben is out for the remainder of the season. Lewandowski broke his jaw and got a concussion late in the game. Terrible luck this season for Bayern, and bad news for neutral fans looking forward to the Champions Leage semis.

damn- that's rough news from one game.

FIRE THE TRAINER!

 

[Mjolnirs]

ugh, what a way to go out.

Bayern dominated early, but seemed to let up once up 1-0. The ref missed a handball that should have been a PK, but

with their play in the second half, Dortmund deserved the equalizer.

The penalties were a mess. Lahm and Alanso both slipping just blows my mind. Follow that with a save against Goetze and Neuer hitting the post, that had to be the worst set of pks I've ever seen.

Also, the Robben injury is a great concern. Hopefully he pulled himself out of caution.

It looks like Robben is out for the remainder of the season. Lewandowski broke his jaw and got a concussion late in the game. Terrible luck this season for Bayern, and bad news for neutral fans looking forward to the Champions Leage semis.

They are hurting. For those that missed it, here is the mess of PKs from Bayern.Also, this is the keeper punch that leveled Lewandowski. (around the 3:30 mark)

 

[Sammy3469]

Thank you for the info.

I guess they don't have to practice here. They could build a training facility elsewhere. Many teams in MLS have built training centers that are away from their stadiums, especially the stadiums that are located in cities.

Right now NYCFC train at Manhattenville Colłege but they probably will build a real training center like Red Bull did eventually to house their academy.

Floppo knows more than I do on that location as I've only ever biked through there and went to one football game, but it could work if the city and Columbia wanted it to. I'm sure there are creative ways they could shoehorn the fields/courts they would be losing into a build, etc. The big issue would be traffic/parking as there's none there and good luck getting there from the Deegan. You'd almost have to force people to take transit there (which is great if you live on the West Side or some parts of Brooklyn, but good luck from the East Side). It is a beautiful location though.

Put it this way, it wouldn't be the first location you'd pick if you had your pick of anywhere in the city, but as the 5ht-6th option its fine.

As an aside, the field is currently Robert Kraft field. I wonder how good a relationship NYCFC has with him.

None of the NYC teams actually practice in the city. The Knicks are in Westchester somewhere. The Jets are on LI and the Giants are in Jersey.

 

[shader]

Frustrating first season as a Liverpool fan is over. The team was almost unwatchable at times. It's like having an NFL team with no QB. Great defending, midfield control, attacking, but can't put it in the net.

I hope we are able to get some strikers next season.

 

[El Floppo]

yeah- I don't think CU would actually lose any fields... other than while teh stadium is rebuilt. and I always thought the football stadium was pretty weak.

I guess it makes sense that all the fields there are now field turf... that bright green one was the football practice field- basically a mud pit unfit for kicking a ball on.

good point about Kraft- obviously a giant CU patron.

 

[B Maverick]

ugh, what a way to go out.

Bayern dominated early, but seemed to let up once up 1-0. The ref missed a handball that should have been a PK, but

with their play in the second half, Dortmund deserved the equalizer.

The penalties were a mess. Lahm and Alanso both slipping just blows my mind. Follow that with a save against Goetze and Neuer hitting the post, that had to be the worst set of pks I've ever seen.

Also, the Robben injury is a great concern. Hopefully he pulled himself out of caution.

It looks like Robben is out for the remainder of the season. Lewandowski broke his jaw and got a concussion late in the game. Terrible luck this season for Bayern, and bad news for neutral fans looking forward to the Champions Leage semis.

They are hurting. For those that missed it, here is the mess of PKs from Bayern.Also, this is the keeper punch that leveled Lewandowski. (around the 3:30 mark)

I love that Neuer is taking PKs.... a GK taking them is just all kinds of Awesome.

 

[charvik]

On a lighter note, Klopp or De Boer?

or rafa...

The English league could use some tactical innovation amoung its managers, so I say Klopp. Don't know much about de Boer as a manager. Rafa would be a huge disappointment.

I've heard that Klopp might be interested in the City job, which surely should be available after the season. I don't see City ownership being happy with an early (for their resources) exit from CL and a 2nd-4th place in the league.

 

[QuizGuy66]

Great win yesterday for HCAFC

34 down 6 (or even less - 3 probably will do it) to go

Brucie is the man.

-QG

 

[roadkill1292]

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

 

[Sinn Fein]

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Rodriguez won't be with Saints next season....

 

[El Floppo]

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Pelle is a confounding cat. First few months of the season it didn't look like anybody could stop the guy- hugely strong in possession, great passer, good touch and nose for goal. and then he just went *poof* and looked like he was scared to play, until the last few games. was he injured?

 

[roadkill1292]

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Rodriguez won't be with Saints next season....

Still trying to spend that Bale cash wisely? Ah, I'm just happy to see the guy back on the field. Goals have been hard to come by and he has been sorely missed. I just hope there's not another mass exodus this year (Clyne/Schneiderlin/Mane) that includes him, too.

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Pelle is a confounding cat. First few months of the season it didn't look like anybody could stop the guy- hugely strong in possession, great passer, good touch and nose for goal. and then he just went *poof* and looked like he was scared to play, until the last few games. was he injured?

No, he just went cold. It was so confounding because he got almost all the minutes and his holdup game was still strong and really important to them. He just couldn't put the damn thing between the posts. You have to play him if you're Koeman because of all the attention he draws and because options were somewhat limited (see Rodriguez, Jay, above).

 

[El Floppo]

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Rodriguez won't be with Saints next season....

Still trying to spend that Bale cash wisely? Ah, I'm just happy to see the guy back on the field. Goals have been hard to come by and he has been sorely missed. I just hope there's not another mass exodus this year (Clyne/Schneiderlin/Mane) that includes him, too.

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Pelle is a confounding cat. First few months of the season it didn't look like anybody could stop the guy- hugely strong in possession, great passer, good touch and nose for goal. and then he just went *poof* and looked like he was scared to play, until the last few games. was he injured?

No, he just went cold. It was so confounding because he got almost all the minutes and his holdup game was still strong and really important to them. He just couldn't put the damn thing between the posts. You have to play him if you're Koeman because of all the attention he draws and because options were somewhat limited (see Rodriguez, Jay, above).

so he went Jozy, then.

 

[Slapdash]

Lots of reports that both Real and Atlético are going to get a 2 window transfer ban handed down from fifa for the same academy stuff that got Barça their ban.

Ugh. Obviously this will affect Atleti more than the other 2 due to not having the funds to bankroll transfers before the ban goes into effect. That's how Barça did it, right?

About ####### time.

 

[Native]

Chelsea-Leicester starting shortly.....

 

[CletiusMaximus]

Chelsea-Leicester starting shortly.....

87 year old Drogba playing his second game in 3 days, with no striker on the bench. Hopefully the poty can do it again, or perhaps Mikel can score another diving header.

 

[roadkill1292]

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Rodriguez won't be with Saints next season....

Still trying to spend that Bale cash wisely? Ah, I'm just happy to see the guy back on the field. Goals have been hard to come by and he has been sorely missed. I just hope there's not another mass exodus this year (Clyne/Schneiderlin/Mane) that includes him, too.

Is it wrong of me to daydream of a Pelle-Chicharito-Jay Rodriguez line next year? Rodriguez finally returned to practice yesterday.

Pelle is a confounding cat. First few months of the season it didn't look like anybody could stop the guy- hugely strong in possession, great passer, good touch and nose for goal. and then he just went *poof* and looked like he was scared to play, until the last few games. was he injured?

No, he just went cold. It was so confounding because he got almost all the minutes and his holdup game was still strong and really important to them. He just couldn't put the damn thing between the posts. You have to play him if you're Koeman because of all the attention he draws and because options were somewhat limited (see Rodriguez, Jay, above).

so he went Jozy, then.

Yeah, a little. It was a test of the fans' patience, even though I don't want to be That Guy.

 

[The Gator]

Chelsea-Leicester starting shortly.....

Zero cares

A boring team playing Leicester..pass

 

[The Gator]

OLSEGAAAARRRD SIGHTING

 

[El Floppo]

two first half subs for Leicester?

 

[NewlyRetired]

It is funny how razor thin the difference between total failure and success can be on rare occasions.

I was watching a video which detailed how Montreal got to the CCL finals.

In the Canadian Championship semifinals (which is the round Montreal entered), they faced NASL side FC Edmonton in a two legged match.

In the second leg, Montreal needed a 98th minute pk call (which looked very very weak at best), to advance to the finals.

Without that call, they don't advance to the Canadian Championship finals, and eventually to the CCL group stage and so on.

 

[El Floppo]

It is funny how razor thin the difference between total failure and success can be on rare occasions.

I was watching a video which detailed how Montreal got to the CCL finals.

In the Canadian Championship semifinals (which is the round Montreal entered), they faced NASL side FC Edmonton in a two legged match.

In the second leg, Montreal needed a 98th minute pk call (which looked very very weak at best), to advance to the finals.

Without that call, they don't advance to the Canadian Championship finals, and eventually to the CCL group stage and so on.

plus everything's on the metric system, so who really knows wth is going on up there anyways

 

[CletiusMaximus]

OptaJoe ‏@OptaJoe 10m

10 minutes ago
33 - Chelsea defenders have now contributed 18 goals and 15 assists in all competitions this season. Unit.

Liverpool's 4 strikers with 8 goals combined.

 

[charvik]

OptaJoe ‏@OptaJoe 10m

10 minutes ago
33 - Chelsea defenders have now contributed 18 goals and 15 assists in all competitions this season. Unit.

Liverpool's 4 strikers with 8 goals combined.

4? Did we buy 3, or call up some toddlers from the academy?

 

[charvik]

£16m head case with no desire for £90k/wk

£16m sale doesn't go through because of players refusal, £45k/wk

£4m superfan that only gets 10 minutes of mop-up duty, even though no others are trying

:X

add to that:

£25m on and off injured talent

£35k/wk spolied little brat who thinks he's worth £180k/wk contract extension

 

[B Maverick]

Chelsea-Leicester starting shortly.....

Zero cares

A boring team playing Leicester..pass

Not watching but hoping for Leicester to get points toward staying in the EPL. Chelsea has the season locked up needing 5 from 5 so a loss does nothing.

 

[B Maverick]

and both Drogba and Terry score. what year is this?

ETA Ramirez adds #3 in the 83', sorry Leicester. today was not to be.