This international break has been a source of all sorts of crazy rumor goodness. A bigtime ManU fan at work says that the only rumor take seriously for them is the Griezmann rumor.The Liverpool injuries (Lallana and Hendo) and travel situations (Firmino and Coutinho) could make the derby this weekend more of a fitty-fitty deal than it's been lately.
Virgil van Dijk now pretty much called for the rest of the season. The Guardian is running the rumor that Chelsea is preparing the winning bid for him this summer (to do what, replace Cahill? I dunno, maybe) but my money is still on ManU with all the money they're going to save by Barcelona not selling them Neymar.
Firmino and Coutinho have 2 full days of practice with the team, but I do wonder about how fresh they will be.The Liverpool injuries (Lallana and Hendo) and travel situations (Firmino and Coutinho) could make the derby this weekend more of a fitty-fitty deal than it's been lately.
Virgil van Dijk now pretty much called for the rest of the season. The Guardian is running the rumor that Chelsea is preparing the winning bid for him this summer (to do what, replace Cahill? I dunno, maybe) but my money is still on ManU with all the money they're going to save by Barcelona not selling them Neymar.
Well, that beats anonymous sources.This international break has been a source of all sorts of crazy rumor goodness. A bigtime ManU fan at work says that the only rumor take seriously for them is the Griezmann rumor.
http://makeagif.com/i/M0nKnTHow do I make this my avatar? https://twitter.com/JordanCarruth/status/848202002689433600
  United no shots on goal in the first half?  No goals in a 0-0 draw where you had 90 mins of the ball?  Mkhi denied, Rashford denied... Carrick looking poor and conservative with his passing.  And Jose goes with the DM Cross till you cant cross no more tactic vs the best aerial defenders in the EPL?.  Only real surprise was Young at LB.  Shaw is no more.You're a nerd.Ned said:
?.....and I'm an idiot.....Ned said:
Mourinho made some interesting comments the other day. Basically said that the team is obviously going all out tomorrow and at the weekend...but that if things start going bad, he will have to consider playing his "A team" in Europe and resting them for the EPL.B Maverick said:United no shots on goal in the first half? No goals in a 0-0 draw where you had 90 mins of the ball? Mkhi denied, Rashford denied... Carrick looking poor and conservative with his passing. And Jose goes with the DM Cross till you cant cross no more tactic vs the best aerial defenders in the EPL?. Only real surprise was Young at LB. Shaw is no more.
Another draw at home. And Everton coming in tomorrow. Zlatan and Herrera back. Waiting on Pogba news.
Gone in the summer - Shaw, Rooney, Carrick....
Martial and Rashford have been so in and out of the lineup they haven't got the run to build on. A good game out of either and they still find themselves on the bench the next day. However this last game all the creativity in MF was gone. No Pogba, No Herrera, No Mata. Carrick and Mkhi were both poor and everyone looked like they were trying to be too fancy. Lingard has no vision and no discipline in the team and I think that caused some issues. Couple times he got in the way of others trying to be the dominant player in MF. Fellaini was actually solid and played the ball around nicely. Can't fault the game on him. Mkhi missed a great chance when he got in on the keeper. Keeper made some nice saves on Rashford.Mourinho made some interesting comments the other day. Basically said that the team is obviously going all out tomorrow and at the weekend...but that if things start going bad, he will have to consider playing his "A team" in Europe and resting them for the EPL.
From a LIV perspective, I'm still the most concerned with Arsenal, as crazy as that sounds. They have 4 relatively easy games in a row. Traditionally, they are a team that slays the bottom end team. Liverpool, while in solid shape, are seeing injuries pile up. Henderson, Lallana, and now Mane. 8 games left for LFC with all of them against teams outside of the top 7. But not an LFC fan in the world feels confident.
Should be a fun run in.
As for United, I didn't get a chance to watch their game this past weekend, but I'm floored by the continued offensive ineptitude. Even with the injuries they had, Rashford and Martial were considered to be future superstars of the game at the end of last season. They haven't really done a thing this year. That's surprising to me.
I watched MN United vs REAL Salt Lake on Saturday. Really frustrating watching MN give up goals in the first 10 minutes every week. Glad there is no relegation in MLS.NewlyRetired said:A rare and interesting Friday night nationally televised double header in MLS tonight. Both games on FS1
KC @ Toronto (home opener)
Atlanta @ Seattle
At least they got their first win. Their defense is atrocious. Rameriz has been very good though.I watched MN United vs REAL Salt Lake on Saturday. Really frustrating watching MN give up goals in the first 10 minutes every week. Glad there is no relegation in MLS.
It looks like a full slate of PL games tomorrow and Wednesday, then again this weekend. Its getting to squeaky bum time for the league. The table is a bit awkward where LFC is the only team in the top 6 that has played 30, United only 28. I'm going to scramble a bit today and tomorrow to see if I can arrange an afternoon off on Wednesday. Chelsea and CIty both with everything to play for, so there's potential for a great game.Mourinho made some interesting comments the other day. Basically said that the team is obviously going all out tomorrow and at the weekend...but that if things start going bad, he will have to consider playing his "A team" in Europe and resting them for the EPL.
From a LIV perspective, I'm still the most concerned with Arsenal, as crazy as that sounds. They have 4 relatively easy games in a row. Traditionally, they are a team that slays the bottom end team. Liverpool, while in solid shape, are seeing injuries pile up. Henderson, Lallana, and now Mane. 8 games left for LFC with all of them against teams outside of the top 7. But not an LFC fan in the world feels confident.
Should be a fun run in.
As for United, I didn't get a chance to watch their game this past weekend, but I'm floored by the continued offensive ineptitude. Even with the injuries they had, Rashford and Martial were considered to be future superstars of the game at the end of last season. They haven't really done a thing this year. That's surprising to me.
When you look at it, ANY team in the top 6 will find their situation change dramatically with 2 draws or losses in a row over the next 4-5 days.It looks like a full slate of PL games tomorrow and Wednesday, then again this weekend. Its getting to squeaky bum time for the league. The table is a bit awkward where LFC is the only team in the top 6 that has played 30, United only 28. I'm going to scramble a bit today and tomorrow to see if I can arrange an afternoon off on Wednesday. Chelsea and CIty both with everything to play for, so there's potential for a great game.
Of course the circumstances are much different, but last year at this time Leicester City had a 7 point lead over Spurs and the question everyone was asking was, "can they possibly with this thing?"When you look at it, ANY team in the top 6 will find their situation change dramatically with 2 draws or losses in a row over the next 4-5 days.
Chelsea are probably ok...but if a team like Tottenham could actually run the table, which is a tough ask, they could be in trouble.
Chelsea can close it all out over the next week. But if City beat them, I think it will officially start getting very interesting.
Probably best answered by others, but my experience is that most any time with the ball outside of his practices is a positive. If he's out in the yard with a friend or two and a soccer ball, I count it as good time no matter what they are doing. The key thing will be if he's doing it of his own accord or whether its only when you drag his butt out there. My neighbor has wasted countless hours setting up cones in his yard, buying goals, rebounders, taking his kid (and mine) to the park, essentially forcing him to play, and I think he just burned his kid out. I long ago gave up trying to get my kid to practice on his own, but if he ever asks me to go kick around with him, I'm there (for what its worth). All that said, juggling, kick against the wall, draw a square on the wall and shoot at it, all manner of touches are time well spent.What's the best 2/3 drills/practices/moves that I can have my 8 year old do get better at soccer. He likes to play soccer, but he has slow feet and is clumsy at times.
I thought about buying him a footbag.
Oh, right... No Hackysack. Totally different skill.Hackysack teaches a pretty unnatural way of keeping a soccer ball in the air. Obviously, it will improve coordination, but trying to juggle an actual ball (which I can't do for ****) is probably better. Even then, I sometimes wonder if a focus on "keepy uppy" means that we aren't teaching kids to have a productive first touch. The aim, after all, isn't to keep the ball up. It's to bring it down under control where you want it.
I did have my first kick around with a 2 year old Scrappygang two weekend ago. He's still a bit dicey on the whole "kick the ball" versus "pick up the ball and run someplace random" thing, but he got in a few dribbles. He mostly enjoyed chasing me around as I eluded him with the world's slowest stepovers. :fatRonaldo:
https://youtu.be/4s0M0mtuBncWhat's the best 2/3 drills/practices/moves that I can have my 8 year old do get better at soccer. He likes to play soccer, but he has slow feet and is clumsy at times.
I thought about buying him a footbag.
That's similar to the Kruyfs videohttps://youtu.be/4s0M0mtuBnc
He can start there and do that until he does 1k in 10min. Excellent starting point as that ball control and those touches very important. It's very simple and he can do it in a 5x5 area.
Once he's got the 1k/10min down. Start 2k, 20min and so on.
HI GB this seems neat but you locked sheet 1, do you have instructions in Spanish on how to unlock it?I created this a couple of years ago, and got bored in a conference call today, so I updated it for this years run in.
Feel free to download and run your scenarios:
Spread sheet EPL Race 16/17
agreed. The common motion (inside of foot swinging upwards) used to keep up a hackey sack is something that is almost never done in soccer.Oh, right... No Hackysack. Totally different skill.
As a newly certified U6 coach I feel eminently unqualified to answer thisWhat's the best 2/3 drills/practices/moves that I can have my 8 year old do get better at soccer. He likes to play soccer, but he has slow feet and is clumsy at times.
I thought about buying him a footbag.
 Download it, you should be able to edit the score cells and nothing elseHI GB this seems neat but you locked sheet 1, do you have instructions in Spanish on how to unlock it?
i don't see where to download it
  will set permissions when I get to my laptop...Mama mi verga?HI GB this seems neat but you locked sheet 1, do you have instructions in Spanish on how to unlock it?
I have the utmost confidence in charv to fix this in no less than one week after the title has been decided.
  try this link...Juggle the ball using left and right feet, and try to avoid using thighs unless it's to calm the ball. Youtube has videos to get him started. You can do it just about anywhere and it really improves that first touch of the ball, coordination, use of both feet, etc. Give him little rewards if he reaches 10, 25, 100. It will make him a better playerWhat's the best 2/3 drills/practices/moves that I can have my 8 year old do get better at soccer. He likes to play soccer, but he has slow feet and is clumsy at times.
I thought about buying him a footbag.
Looks like I may have missed one fixture for Arsenal, and one for ManU. Will check tonight and update
OK, fixed the missing games. Missed the postponed Southampton aways for both.Looks like I may have missed one fixture for Arsenal, and one for ManU. Will check tonight and update
I got similar order, if you flip Man Utd and Arsenal, but much closer in points.
GP
W
D
L
F
A
GD
PTS
1
Chelsea
38
30
4
4
81
28
53
94
2
Tottenham
38
24
11
3
73
27
46
83
3
Manchester City
38
24
9
5
79
39
40
81
4
Liverpool
38
22
10
6
88
50
38
76
5
Arsenal
37
20
10
7
77
45
32
70
6
Manchester United
37
17
14
6
52
33
19
65
This is what I came up with![]()
The Loons are playing rope-a-dope. They will soon unleash White Lightning and take the league by storm. Gatt will crush every record this league has ever seen. Mark it, dude.At least they got their first win. Their defense is atrocious. Rameriz has been very good though.
I'm excited to see all the scenarios @roadkill1292 comes up with hereI created this a couple of years ago, and got bored in a conference call today, so I updated it for this years run in.
Feel free to download and run your scenarios:
Spread sheet EPL Race 16/17
  Little mystified by this. Who here knows less than me?I'm excited to see all the scenarios @roadkill1292 comes up with here![]()
Gatt's already been traded to Colorado, dude.The Loons are playing rope-a-dope. They will soon unleash White Lightning and take the league by storm. Gatt will crush every record this league has ever seen. Mark it, dude.
Hmmm...apparently the Loons roped-another-dope...Gatt's already been traded to Colorado, dude.