The Soccer Thread

[shnsajax]

Chelsea takes the Real Madrid path and is bounced from the Champions League, losing at home to Inter 1-0. Love it.

 

Drogba also got sent off late for appearing to stomp on a Inter player's ankle.

 

Drogba is such a douche.

 

An Inter/Barca matchup would be a lot of fun.

[USSoccer]

John Terry is such a jag. I completely enjoyed watching Chelsea lose.

 

Jose is the ish.

[CubInOK]

Chelsea takes the Real Madrid path and is bounced from the Champions League, losing at home to Inter 1-0. Love it.

 

Drogba also got sent off late for appearing to stomp on a Inter player's ankle.

 

Drogba is such a douche.

 

An Inter/Barca matchup would be a lot of fun.

Is it just me or is Inter full of world-class players in their primes?

[wolf stansson]

For our Belgish friends: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/columnists/gabriele_marcotti/article7061728.ece

Brief snippet:

The World Cup is less than 100 days away and, unsurprisingly, bookmakers and fans are already busy making predictions.

 

But what if you looked past that? What if you started thinking about possible World Cup winners in 2014 or even 2018?

 

If you could find somebody who would take your bet, you might want to put down some money on Belgium as a dark-horse value bet. Never mind that they failed to qualify for the past two World Cups or that they have featured only once in the European Championship since 1984 (and that was in 2000, when they were co-hosts). Right now, no country its size has as impressive a crop of precocious 16 to 22-year-olds.

 

Something is brewing in Belgium and it's not just delicious beer.

 

I have started to notice the wealth of good young players coming up who are Belgian, but the true depth always sneaks up on you until they start showing up at glamor clubs, which looks like it's going to happen here shortly.

[wvcbxl]

For our Belgish friends: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/columnists/gabriele_marcotti/article7061728.ece.

 

:-))

That piece was obviously hot news around here, but local commentators aren't buying it ... yet.

Talented as those individuals may be, they still haven't been able to produce as a team so far.

We'll have to wait and see if Advocaat will be able to make them play as a team. If he succeeds, than yes, some international success can be hoped for. As for now, we'll settle for simply qualifying to begin with.

[shnsajax]

Superb, just superb. Messi picks the ball up just inside his own half, drifts inside and carries the ball 30 yards before unleashing a stunning shot into the top corner. That's why he is the best in the world, forget Wayne Rooney.

 

Want to see this

[wvcbxl]

Barça completely overwhelmed Stuttgart yesterday; a very impressive display.

[shnsajax]

Haha Carlo Ancelotti is now on the hot seat :-). Chelsea not winning the league would be beautiful.

[Jon]

Superb, just superb. Messi picks the ball up just inside his own half, drifts inside and carries the ball 30 yards before unleashing a stunning shot into the top corner. That's why he is the best in the world, forget Wayne Rooney.

 

Want to see this

Not even sure how he got the shot off. He was surrounded.

[Guest]

Haha Carlo Ancelotti is now on the hot seat :-). Chelsea not winning the league would be beautiful.

 

Madrid and Chelsea not winning their leagues - with Madrid losing at home to Barcelona later in the year - after falling out of the CL in the Round of 16 would be great.

[shnsajax]

Good Article on Soccer in the US.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/SPORT/football/03/09/team.usa.world.cup/index.html?hpt=C2

 

Evidence that soccer is shedding its second-class citizenry may lie in the ticket sales for the World Cup in South Africa. Speaking on March 4, U.S. Soccer Federation spokesman Neil Buethe said at least 125,000 tickets had been sold stateside, more than in England or Brazil and second only to South Africa.

 

It's difficult to compare this year's ticket sales, Buethe said, because FIFA, world soccer's governing body, has changed how it sells them.

 

The federation had about 10,000 tickets allotted for the U.S. team's first-round games in the 2006 World Cup in Germany -- not enough to sate the 40,000 applicants but enough to top the combined American sales of the 2002, 1998 and 1990 World Cups combined, Buethe said.

[vj9999]

Dempsey!! What a great goal!

[shnsajax]

Juve down to 9 men, I really need a job that has access to a tv.

[USSoccer]

He scores with his left, he scores with his right. That boy Clint Dempsey, makes Drogba look shite!

 

Goal of the year. http://videos.sapo.pt/CvZlPd5iGsNThs2CSoHv

 

DONT TREAD

[shnsajax]

He scores with his left, he scores with his right. That boy Clint Dempsey, makes Drogba look [expletive]!

 

Goal of the year. http://videos.sapo.pt/CvZlPd5iGsNThs2CSoHv

 

DONT TREAD

 

Haha, he had no clue that was coming =D>

 

Were his cleats purple or was that just the video.

[wolf stansson]

Good god. That's two remarkably sick goals for Dempsey this year.

 

 

Oh btw, Charlie Davies is back in training w/Sochaux on Monday.

[wolf stansson]

The cheeky bastard himself interviewed post-game: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xy2TFgtF4yo

 

So pregame Hodgson keeps saying in interviews he thinks he sees things in Juve's back line that they can exploit. I saw that and didn't give it a second thought, not giving them much chance to come back.

 

He's easily the best English manager in the world. Steve McLaren #2? So apparently English managers need to get run out of England before they reach their potential.

[shnsajax]

Wow Fulham really could have put up 8 today. Hit the post twice and about 5 other great chances.

 

Clint was rockin the purple and pink cleats today.

[USSoccer]

The cheeky bastard himself interviewed post-game: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xy2TFgtF4yo

 

So pregame Hodgson keeps saying in interviews he thinks he sees things in Juve's back line that they can exploit. I saw that and didn't give it a second thought, not giving them much chance to come back.

 

He's easily the best English manager in the world. Steve McLaren #2? So apparently English managers need to get run out of England before they reach their potential.

 

Hodgson for USMNT next cycle. He's fantastic. Without Andy Johnson all season, Pantsil most of the season, Zamora missed a month, Deuce missed about two, and they are in the top half of the EPL table and in the last 8 of the EL. Amazing job.

 

And Bobby Zamora, for as hideously bad as he was last season, has been nothing short of stellar this term.

[shnsajax]

Champions League Draw

 

Lyon v Bordeaux

Bayern Munich v Manchester United

Arsenal v Barcelona (Son of a Bitch :banghead: )

Internazionale v CSKA Moscow

 

I don't think the Arsenal back line stand a chance against Messi.

[wolf stansson]

Hodgson for USMNT next cycle.

That'd be a dream, unfortunately I think he is manning the England post next cycle.

 

Also, the Zamora story is amusing. This time last year he was declaring to play for T&T. Now he's getting some backing for an England call up.

Lyon v Bordeaux

Bayern Munich v Manchester United

Tasty.

 

I think Munich can beat United. At the very least, make it fun. The French derby will be fun. The Arsenal-Barca matchup is going to be fun, but is like Barca going up against Barca lite.

[Guest]

Champions League Draw

 

Lyon v Bordeaux

Bayern Munich v Manchester United

Arsenal v Barcelona (Son of a Bitch :banghead: )

Internazionale v CSKA Moscow

 

I don't think the Arsenal back line stand a chance against Messi.

 

Plus the winner of that probably will face Inter in the semis. Also interesting that the two French teams got matched up also.

[shnsajax]

Champions League Draw

 

Lyon v Bordeaux

Bayern Munich v Manchester United

Arsenal v Barcelona (Son of a Bitch :banghead: )

Internazionale v CSKA Moscow

 

I don't think the Arsenal back line stand a chance against Messi.

 

Plus the winner of that probably will face Inter in the semis. Also interesting that the two French teams got matched up also.

 

Yep. If Arsenal win it, they will earn it.

[wolf stansson]

CBA is done. 5 year deal. Sounds really convoluted so far. No true free agency but an end of contract player draft. Some sort of guaranteed contracts as well.

 

Overall it's sounding very mls'ish.

 

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccerinsider/2010/03/mls_players_union_reach_deal_a.html

Five days before the season opener, MLS and the players' union have struck a deal on a new, five-year collective bargaining agreement. The players had threatened to strike if a new pact couldn't be reached this weekend. With approximately 25 players participating, the sides met all day and night Thursday and Friday at the offices of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service offices in Washington, and announced the deal this afternoon.

 

The players' primary issue was free agency, and although they were not granted full rights to move between clubs in the league, they did agree to a "re-entry draft" for players out of contract at the end of the season.

 

"Going forward, we are going to have a real relationship with the league as opposed to being combative at times, and that's crucial for any league to do well," Los Angeles Galaxy forward Landon Donovan said. "We have been extremely unified and united throughout this process. It's been a very productive few weeks. We are all mainly excited to play soccer this year and proud of what we accomplished. This is not a one-day celebration; this is the start of many good things to come for many years for our players and our league."

 

According to union chief Bob Foose:

*For the first time, a majority of players will have guaranteed contracts.

*The players' ability to move freely within the league will be greatly improved.

*Player compensation will be increased substantially.

 

"This has been a major victory for the process of collective bargaining," federal mediator George Cohen said.

 

More to come.....

[shnsajax]

A re-entry draft for players out of contract at the end of the season. Never heard of that before, or even thought of it.